Gregg Williams Named Browns DC: Latest Contract Details, Comments and Reaction

Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson announced on Sunday that Gregg Williams will replace Ray Horton as the team's defensive coordinator.

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"We are thrilled that [Williams] is joining our staff as defensive coordinator," Jackson said. "Gregg has been an outstanding defensive coach in this league for a very long time. His defenses have frequently finished among the top ten in the league. He adapts his scheme to maximize the strengths of his personnel and has always been able to get the most out of his players. We look forward to him coming in, helping our players improve and helping us become the winning team we are all working towards."

"It's very exciting for me to become part of the Cleveland Browns organization and join [Jackson's] coaching staff," Williams said. "I have so much respect for Hue having competed against him in this league for so many years. We're looking forward to getting to work."

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Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot provided additional quotes from Jackson following the press release:

CBSSports.com's Jason La Canfora first reported the agreement on Saturday, with Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal confirming La Canfora's report.

The 58-year-old Williams has been a coach at the NFL level since 1990, missing just one year while working with six different franchises.

Most recently, he led a Los Angeles Rams defense that ranked ninth in the league but allowed 32 passing touchdowns, which tied for the third-worst mark in the NFL.

It was a difficult first season in Los Angeles for the Rams, who fired head coach Jeff Fisher after 13 games on their way to a 4-12 record. The move irked Williams, per ESPN.com's Alden Gonzalez:

The change could have been a big reason why Williams decided to join the Browns, a move that was rumored as early as Friday, per Alex Marvez of Sporting News.

Now he will be tasked with trying to turn around a defense that was one of the worst in football in 2016:

Stat	Amount	NFL Rank
Points Allowed	452	30th
Total Yards Allowed	6,279	31st
Turnovers Forced	13	30th
1st Downs Allowed	364	31st
Passing Touchdowns Allowed	36	32nd

Williams began his career as a defensive quality control coach with the Houston Oilers, working his way up the ranks to defensive coordinator in 1997, when the franchise moved to Tennessee with Fisher at the helm.

After four years, he took over as the head coach of the Buffalo Bills but found little success with a 17-31 record in three seasons.

Stints with the Washington Redskins and Jacksonville Jaguars preceded his arrival in New Orleans in 2009. He helped the Saints win their first Super Bowl in franchise history that year, but he lasted only two more seasons in New Orleans.

That was because of the Bountygate scandal, which led to a one-year suspension and his departure from the team after he paid his defensive players to injure opposing players. Following his suspension, he went back to the Titans as a special assistant before joining the Rams in 2014.

With a bevy of experience under his belt, Williams could be facing one of his toughest tests as he tries to help turn around one of the league's most hapless franchises.