Pressers

Redskins Pressers: Trent Williams: Cancerous tumor was discovered 6 years ago

Bill Callahan and others answers questions after today's practice

By Scott Jennings@ScottJenningsHH Oct 31, 2019, 4:00pm EDT

NFL Washington Redskins vs Dallas Cowboys

Bill Callahan and Greg Manusky spoke to the media after today's practice, but the real story was Trent Williams. He spoke to the media for the first time since his holdout started in June. He talked about the cancerous tumor that was discovered 6 years ago, trade rumors, and the guaranteed money left on his contract.

Watch Live: Post-Practice Press Conferences https://t.co/Kihb56xNaW
— Washington Redskins (@Redskins) October 31, 2019

Washington Nationals:

Stay in the fight. ✅
Finish the fight. ✅
FIGHT FOR OL' D.C. ✅@breakingtco

https://t.co/UF8g0g6AZa • #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/a9G0bdOsLW
— Hogs Haven (@HogsHaven) October 31, 2019

Bill Callahan opens his presser congratulating the Nats
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Case Keenum:

Bill Callahan to the podium. Case Keenum is still in the concussion protocol.

Callahan indicates that Keenum could not practice tomorrow, get cleared on Saturday and still start on Sunday. For now though, Haskins is getting the majority of the reps.
— Craig Hoffman (@CraigHoffman) October 31, 2019

Dwayne Haskins Jr.:

Case Keenum is still in the concussion protocol but Callahan isn’t ready to name Dwayne Haskins the starter for Sunday
— Les Carpenter (@Lescarpenter) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams:

Callahan says Trent Williams is in meetings but they are working to find him a custom helmet so he could play without pain.
— Craig Hoffman (@CraigHoffman) October 31, 2019

Callahan confirms that the roster exemption is a two week exemption.
— Craig Hoffman (@CraigHoffman) October 31, 2019

Asked about timeline for finding a comfortable helmet for Trent Williams, Bill Callahan tells the truth: “I don’t know.”
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Greg Manusky Presser

Redzone plan:

Manusky said the #Redskins need to have a good red zone plan against the #Bills
— Zach Selby (@DarDarBinx61) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams Media Scrum

Today’s pod - The full Trent Williams press conference. It’s a must listen. Must. https://t.co/gZaJsEucvd
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Cancer:

Trent Williams tells us he had cancer. DFSP. Growth first started 6 years ago and team diagnosis said it was minor.
6 years!
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams time. For real.

Lots to discuss.

Mentions cancer diagnosis changed his outlook. But also said the timeline on this process, led by Redskins medical staff, began six years ago.

Also discussed lack of GTD $$$.
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams said it was a cancerous tumor on his head. Was first discovered 6 years ago but doctors told him it was minor. #redskins pic.twitter.com/s47RHSCxVg
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams said he was diagnosed with cancer this offseason: “I almost lost my life.”
— Les Carpenter (@Lescarpenter) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams talks about how scared he was before his cancer surgery. Talked about the impact that had on his family and his young daughters. “I was lucky.”
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Williams said the cancer was weeks from going to his brain
— Les Carpenter (@Lescarpenter) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams said he was in the hospital in Chicago for two weeks and nobody from the Redskins visited him. DeAngelo Hall visited him though.
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

The growth, he said, was cancerous. He needed to have it removed before it metastasized. He said if he had done chemo, he’d have a max 15 years to live
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams was diagnosed with Dermatofibrosarcoma Protuberans (DFSP), a rare form of cancer.
Doctors said it was weeks from moving to his brain when they removed the growth. #Redskins
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams on returning"It was a ton of emotions. I almost lost my life, you know? Seriously, I almost lost my life. Youre 30, coming off your 7th straight Pro Bowl and a doctor tells you to get your affairs in order. It's not going to sit well with you. And it still doesnt."
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams on the surgery. "Extracting it was the only thing they could do. Doing radiology on it would have put a cap on my life. 15 years, I think was the most I had after I would have started chemo. So, I had to cut it out." #Redskins
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

Williams on not getting a 2nd opinion cont'd:

"...and if I’m being told by the very people I put my career in the hands of, people are teling me I'm fine, I’m fine. That’s how I looked at it." (2/2)
— Craig Hoffman (@CraigHoffman) October 31, 2019

More Williams on staying with #Redskins doctors:

"Well I didn’t go elsewhere, I got the team to finally get what I thought was a cyst extracted and when they did they found it wasn’t a cyst it was a tumor. DFSP is what the cancer is called, a very rare soft tissue cancer."
— Craig Hoffman (@CraigHoffman) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams said he almost lost his life. Was scary and still is. #redskins pic.twitter.com/M5fXH3ikGa
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

“Think how you describe to your 9-year-old, your 5-year-old that daddy might not be here,” Williams said of being told his life was in danger. “It’s tough.”

“I guess nobody took the time to see what was going on there,” Williams said. “Football was more important, and to me, it was more important too. I was told it was something minor so I didn’t really question them. But I mean the lump continued to grow over the years, it was concerning but there was no pain involved and if I’m being told by the very people I put my career in the hands of, people are telling me ‘I’m fine, I’m fine.’ That’s how I looked at it.”

“I got the team to finally get what I thought was a cyst extracted, and when they did, they found it wasn’t a cyst it was a tumor,” Williams said. “DFSP is what the cancer is called, a very rare soft tissue cancer. So they realized it was that and you know obviously five years it grew substantially than what it was when I first brought it to their attention.”

Trust:

I asked Trent Williams if he still trusted the organization. “No there’s no trust,” he said.
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 31, 2019

Family:

Trent Williams says he’s been watching all the Redskins games. “These guys are my family.” Adds “I hated to see Jay go.”
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Guaranteed money:

Trent Williams also says that it’s crazy for him to be playing without guaranteed money on his deal.
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Asked if more guaranteed money could fix his relationship with the Redskins, Trent Williams said he’s not “asking them for a dime.”
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Alex Smith:

Trent Williams says watching Alex Smith go down last year and “we haven’t had the best history here with medical stuff” made an impact on his desire for more guaranteed money.
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams is also unhappy with his contract situation. He doesn't get any guaranteed money this year and he's concerned about what happens in case of injury. Points out Alex Smith.
"We haven't had the best history with the way medical stuff has been handled here." #Redskins
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

#FireBruceAllen:

Question: Can the relationship between you and Bruce Allen be repaired?

Trent Williams: (pause) "Next question."
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) October 31, 2019

Williams made it clear he still respects Dan Snyder. The issue is more with Allen and the medical staff.
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 31, 2019

Trade?

I asked Trent Williams if he wanted to be traded and he just laughed. Also worth noting he said how much he still values his friendship with Dan Snyder.
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Redskins tackle Trent Williams just wrapped up an 18 minute presser. Said the growth was cancer. Said he no longer trusts the organization. Said felt waiting until last minute to Try to trade him was vindictive. Said has nothing against Dan Snyder. More coming later...
— John Keim (@john_keim) October 31, 2019

“I just felt like that was done to embarrass me so to speak. Try to make it feel like, ‘Ain’t nobody want you; You’re not good enough for us to trade for. I felt like that was the play, more so than to get me moved.”

Holdout:

Trent Williams said during his holdout “There was no communication, there was no conversation” with the front office. He talked with all of the players though
— JP Finlay (@JPFinlayNBCS) October 31, 2019

Physical:

Trent Williams said it was weird to have his physical with the same people that misdiagnosed the tumor. #redskins
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

Trent Williams talking about the helmet discomfort, "I just had my whole head opened up. I lost 30 percent of my scalp. It's not going to feel great. It's going to take some time." #Redskins
— Kareem Copeland (@kareemcopeland) October 31, 2019

Helmet:

As the #Redskins try to find a suitable helmet for Trent Williams, I’m told he’s worn Riddell models virtually his entire career. He switched over to the SpeedFlex from the VS4 in recent years. His current model isnt banned by the NFL so it’s not an Antonio Brown situation
— Mitchell Tischler (@Mitch_Tischler) October 31, 2019

Medical staff:

Williams says he didn’t want anyone fired over his diagnosis pic.twitter.com/liVXDlqr0z
— Matthew Paras (@Matthew_Paras) October 31, 2019

Williams: Cancer scare to blame for Redskins rift https://t.co/5jTbln2uFf
— John Keim (@john_keim) October 31, 2019

Pushback on Trent Williams' comments has begun. He claimed no post-surgery ride from the airport & no hospital visit from a team official. Sources say car service/first-class airfare offered, and Redskins head trainer spent several days with him. Update: https://t.co/FUx2SwxlvQ
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) November 1, 2019