Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Kyle Williams is a well-established favorite of the experts at Pro Football Focus, where he is currently listed second in the site's race for Defensive Player of the Year.
Williams, enjoying the best season of his career by a considerable margin, has also drawn the notice of the folks at Football Outsiders. Doug Farrar, who writes a Smarter Stats column regularly at the Washington Post, threw some praise Williams' way on Friday.
"At Football Outsiders, one of our jobs is to unearth underrated players and tell you why they're special," Farrar writes. "This week, the spotlight goes in Buffalo's Kyle Williams - the fifth-year defensive tackle has put up Successes (down and distance stops) in each of the eight pass plays in his direction and 43 of the 52 run plays. Opposing backs are averaging just 1.9 yards per play against him, and only Ndamukong Suh has more sacks among linemen who play tackle most of the time than Williams' five."
The 27-year-old Williams' star has been rising all season long, as he's gained significant notice not just from NFL observers, but from the Bills' own fan base. A Pro Bowl alternate in 2009, it'd be a shame if we didn't do our part to get Williams into that game this season. Go vote, folks.