Patriots defensive coordinator Terrell Williams collapsed on sideline during Monday practice

New England Patriots defensive coordinator Terrell Williams reportedly collapsed while on the sideline during practice on Monday. He was able to get up under his own power despite a stretcher being brought out for him.

Terrell Williams was forced to miss time in the spring due to an undisclosed health issue. However, ahead of rookie minicamp, head coach Mike Vrabel shared that he was back with the team.

Shortly after Vrabel initially announced the news that Williams had to step away from the Patriots, Williams held a Zoom call with reporters. There, he shared some insight into his role while dealing with the medical issue, which remained undisclosed.

“I want to make it clear that I’m away from the building, but I’m not away from the team,” Williams said. “I’m doing good. I’m not away from the football team. I came back home here to Detroit, for spring break, and had a little medical scare. I mean, it wasn’t a little medical scare. It was a medical scare. Since then, per doctor’s orders, I’ve kind of stayed here, in Detroit, and been handling that.”

Following his collapse, Williams was forced to step away from practice. In his place, inside linebackers coach Zak Kuhr stepped in to call plays for the final team period. Kuhr had previously served as the interim defensive coordinator when Williams battled his health issues in the spring. Presumably, if those issues continued, Kuhr would once again step into that role.

Kuhr and Williams had previously coached together with Tennessee. At the time, when he previously took over as the interim defensive coordinator, Williams took the time to praise his performance as a coach.

“Zak Kuhr has done an unbelievable job while I’ve been away, and we’ve communicated daily on just the things that need to get done,” Williams said. “He’s an unbelievably smart guy… I’ve grown to respect him in a short amount of time. I mean, we were together really, for four of those years in Tennessee, and I got the utmost respect. I think he’s going to be a superstar in this league, smart and more than anything, I think that he has the ability to connect with players.”

Now in his first year with the Patriots, Terrell Williams has previously been a longtime assistant coach. In particular, Williams has worked with defensive line units with the Lions, Titans, Dolphins, and Raiders, going back to 2012. Prior to that, he coached in college at Texas A&M, Purdue, and Akron, among several other stops.

The entire New England Patriots coaching staff turned over after a difficult 2024 season under then-head coach Jerod Mayo. He’d be replaced by Mike Vrabel, who went to work putting together a staff he was comfortable with. Terrell Williams, who had coached under Vrabel and been his assistant head coach as well as defensive line coach, is a major piece of that staff.

The NFL season is just over a month away, with the Patriots beginning their season on September 7th against the Las Vegas Raiders. Preseason play, meanwhile, kicks off this Friday, August 8th.