CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Carolina Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams posted the following message on Twitter a few hours after landing in Charlotte following a Jan. 10 loss to Seattle in an NFC divisional playoff game:
— DeAngelo Williams (@DeAngeloRB) January 12, 2015
I have no idea what will happen to Williams, either.
While part of me believes it's time for Carolina to move on and release the 31-year-old running back with one year left on his contract, there are sound reasons for keeping Williams, the team's all-time leading rusher.
He is not perceived to be a locker room distraction. He still is a viable backup now that Jonathan Stewart has emerged as the clear No. 1 back, although the $6.3 million that Williams would count against the 2015 cap is hard to justify.
Perhaps this can be resolved by a renegotiation. Or perhaps the Panthers simply will want to move forward and start developing a younger back behind Stewart.
I can't say what Williams is thinking any more than I could for the Panthers. That's because Williams did only two interviews in the locker room in 2014. By having fullback Mike Tolbert ask him questions, Williams at times made a mockery of the rules that require NFL players to be available to the media once per week.
Was it his last year playing for the Panthers? Carolina general manager Dave Gettleman said at his season-ending news conference he needed to talk to Williams. He called him a "pro's pro."
Williams left the stadium on Jan. 11 without talking to reporters. What we know about what he's thinking has come from social media, such as this tweet on Jan. 13:
@g_goddy hey I'm under contract but when they release me it will be somebody else time to go! We will all have this convo hahahaha
— DeAngelo Williams (@DeAngeloRB) January 14, 2015Williams is big on social media. He uses it to promote breast cancer awareness.
He's also wary. "Ultimately, social media is a way to let people in, but if you're not careful, there can be serious consequences," he wrote this month in the "The Cauldron," a sports website that sometimes allows athletes to share stories.
Williams emphasized that, "as a portal, the connection runs both ways," and that some people go too far. He cited a social-media interaction after his costly fumble in the 2013 season opener: "One misguided person took the opportunity to get personal. He wrote, 'Hey, DeAngelo, I hope you don’t fumble that daughter of yours like you fumbled the game away!'"
Again, I don't know what ultimately the Panthers will do with Williams. But the best way to get his reaction will likely be via social media. Or maybe not.