Browns safety says he 'hates' former coach Gregg Williams, would have requested trade if he stayed

As it turns out, Odell Beckham Jr. isn’t the only player on the Cleveland Browns with animosity toward former interim head coach and current New York Jets defensive coordinator Gregg Williams.

Browns safety Damarious Randall told cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot that he would have immediately requested a trade if the team hired Williams as permanent head coach following his interim stint last season:

Randall landed with the Browns last season as part of the trade that sent back-up quarterback DeShone Kizer to the Green Bay Packers. A former first-round pick, Randall posted a career year under Williams with his new team, with a career-high 85 tackles and four interceptions.

Clearly, he wasn’t happy behind closed doors as Williams took over the team as interim head coach following the firing of Hue Jackson.

Not a ringing endorsement with Gregg Williams under fire again

Randall’s assertion comes a day after Beckham claimed that his new Browns teammates had told him Williams ordered them to take out the All-Pro during a preseason game in 2017, Williams’ first season as defensive coordinator with the team.

The reported order led to Beckham taking a very low hit from then-Browns cornerback Briean Boddy-Calhoun, resulting in a high-ankle sprain for Beckham to begin a season in which he ended up playing only four games.

“Nobody in the NFL is really out to do stuff like that,” Beckham said. “I had players on this team telling me that’s what he was telling them to do: Take me out of the game and it’s preseason. You just know who he is.”

Williams is, of course, the coach who was suspended indefinitely for his role in Bountygate in 2012 during his tenure with the New Orleans Saints. The NFL determined that Williams had created a fund that paid out to players who injured their opponents.

Beckham’s claim drew a denial from Williams on Friday, with a laughable helping of revisionist history.

“We don’t do that. I’ve never done that anywhere I’ve been,” Williams said. “We don’t do anything to hurt the team. It’s the No. 1 primary thing. You’re committing penalties, you’re doing those type of stuff, we just don’t do it. And you guys [in the media] are cooperating, giving [Beckham] attention. Just don’t give him attention.”

Given his past, Williams probably isn’t going to receive much benefit of the doubt if another player is accusing him of encouraging dangerous hits.

Between Beckham’s accusation, Randall’s condemnation and more criticism from Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry (“We know who he is. Everyone in the game knows who he is.”), Williams might not have so many friendly handshakes at the end of Monday night’s game between his current and former team.

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