Evan Williams keeps stacking up plays for the Packers, and Sunday night against Dallas only added another layer to what has become a fast-rising season.
Green Bay rolled past the Cowboys 23-13 on Sunday Night Football, though the final margin barely captured how controlled the game felt. The Packers’ defense had Dak Prescott bottled up for much of the night, holding him to 258 yards and forcing two interceptions. Williams accounted for one of those turnovers in the second quarter, then filled up the stat sheet with six total tackles, a quarterback hit and a pass deflection.
That kind of night is becoming familiar. Williams has been a key part of Green Bay’s three-game winning streak, and his play is starting to look less like a hot stretch and more like a true breakout. At this point, he’s making a strong case for his first Pro Bowl selection, with All-Pro recognition no longer sounding out of place.
What makes the surge even more important is the timing. The Packers opened the year without Micah Parsons, then lost Edgerrin Cooper in Week 4 and Javon Hargrave in the following game. Even with those injuries piling up, the defense has held together, and Williams has been one of the players keeping it from slipping.
His interception against Tampa Bay was his first of the season, and after that game he said he needed to be a tone-setter. He said he had to step up after Cooper’s season-ending injury. He has backed that up in the weeks since.
The rise hasn’t exactly come out of nowhere. Williams, a fourth-round pick in 2024 and a former Oregon Duck, has improved year after year.
He played 56 percent of Green Bay’s defensive snaps as a rookie, jumped to 86 percent in 2025, and is at 100 percent this season. His production has climbed right along with the workload.
The takeaway numbers tell the same story. Williams had one interception as a rookie, then three the next season, and he’s on pace to set a new personal best. Add in his ability to pressure the quarterback, and it’s easy to see why he was viewed as a breakout candidate entering 2026.
He’s also giving the Packers something they can really lean on alongside Xavier McKinney. McKinney has been one of Green Bay’s top defenders for the past few years, earning a Pro Bowl spot and First-Team All-Pro honors in 2024 after piling up eight interceptions.
He already has three this season. Williams isn’t overshadowing him, but he’s no longer just playing in McKinney’s wake, either.
The Packers now have an ascending safety in Williams and a high-end tandem on the back end. As Green Bay keeps winning, both players are going to keep getting noticed.
In Other News...
Packers Suddenly Have A Backfield Question Fans Didn't Expect
Green Bays 23-13 win over Dallas brought plenty of encouraging signs, from Matthew Goldens impact in the passing game to a secondary that helped keep the Cowboys in check. Jordan Loves offense moved efficiently enough despite a few drops, and Matt LaFleurs plan drew positive notice as the Packers continued to show a more balanced feel on that side of the ball.
The one unexpected wrinkle came in the backfield, where MarShawn Lloyd never found much rhythm and Pierre Strong Jr. ended up handling the bulk of the work early. For a team that left Week 6 feeling good about several key pieces, the running game suddenly looks like the place where Green Bay has to sort out who it wants carrying the load going forward. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Offense Still Looks Broken After Another Brutal Loss
Dallas looked stuck in neutral again at Lambeau Field, where the Packers turned a promising afternoon into another rough result for a Cowboys offense still searching for answers. Green Bays defense bothered Dak Prescott throughout the day, and the game tilted quickly as the Packers built a lead that put Dallas in chase mode before halftime. Jordan Love did enough to keep Green Bay in control, throwing for 276 yards and accounting for two touchdowns as the Packers moved to 4-2.
The bigger concern for Dallas was how familiar the script felt, with the offense failing to find rhythm and the defense unable to keep the game within reach. Green Bays interceptions of Prescott were part of the damage, and the Packers never really let the Cowboys settle into anything comfortable on either side of the ball. For a team that came into the day at 2-3, the loss leaves another lingering question about how much better this offense can get before the standings start to harden around it. [Read more 🡒]
Jonathan Gannon Is Already Changing The Feel Of This Packers Defense
Six weeks into the season, Jonathan Gannon has already given Green Bays defense a noticeably different edge. The former Arizona Cardinals defensive coordinator has helped steady a unit that looks much more disruptive and organized than it did a year ago, with several players stepping up around him and making the group more competitive on a weekly basis.
The results have shown up even with key names missing from the lineup, which makes the early turnaround stand out even more. Green Bay has found a way to stay productive and force mistakes while waiting for pieces to get healthy, and the question now is how much higher this defense can climb once the full group is available again. [Read more 🡒]