Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald announces the retirement of Center Connor Williams

“Olu is going to play center for us right now and we’re excited about his opportunity. Like all the other young guys that have had opportunities, Olu is right there, he’s worked his tail off and he’s got a great opportunity. We’re excited to see him play.

“He’s a guy who’s been knocking on the door for a while. Obviously, it’s an unforeseen circumstance that you have to take on your head, but the silver lining is that we’re going to see Olu go and do his thing.. This guy’s been working really hard, pretty much started at center for us all offseason, so we’ve had a really good week of practice with Connor going on we.”

Williams, a seventh-year veteran, was in his first season with the Seahawks after signing as a free agent this summer. Williams was previously the starting guard for the Cowboys for three seasons before moving to center for his two seasons with Miami. His 2023 season was cut short by a torn ACL, but Williams was able to return for the start of the season, signing with the Seahawks in August.

Williams’ unexpected retirement was the second major roster change this week, following the Seahawks’ decision to waive starting linebacker Tyrel Dodson on Monday. But despite significant changes, those moves haven’t been a distraction for the team, Macdonald said.

“I thought we had an excellent week of preparation,” Macdonald said. “Our guys are doing a phenomenal job. This being the NFL, that’s also part of the messaging when things happen: ‘Hey, it’s more the norm than not. Things are going to move and shake and there will be stories, which is good, it means people are interested in what we’re doing and all that.’ But our guys know this is noise, man. We have to ignore the noise, stay ahead, let’s focus on what we can control, which is having a great week of training, our attitudes every day. and they have done that, and they deserve a lot of credit.”