Vikings safety is sticking his neck out

He wore a neck brace not long ago. His helmet felt as heavy as a Hummer when he put it on for the first time post-injury. And he wasn't cleared for full contact until two weeks ago.

But if Vikings safety Madieu Williams feels even a smidgen of anxiety or fear about playing his first game after suffering a neck injury back in early August, well, he doesn't show it. The guy was so calm that he made laid-back seem uptight.

The way he sees it, it's like riding a bike. Been there, done that, so why worry?

"I'm poised and I'm confident that I can go back to doing the things I'm capable of on the football field prior to me getting hurt," Williams said. "No nervousness. I've been doing this for a long time."

True, but he's never done it in a Vikings uniform or following such a serious injury. But Williams is expected to be on the field and in the starting lineup today when the Vikings play host to the Houston Texans.

A key offseason acquisition who signed a six-year, $33 million contract, Williams privately might feel like a kid ready to hightail it downstairs on Christmas morning. But he's kept his emotions in check as he prepared for his long-awaited Vikings debut.

The coaching staff put Williams through a series of contact drills the past two weeks to prepare him as much as possible for game action. Williams said he's not worried about how his neck will respond to violent collisions and insists that his first hit is no big deal.

"If I was a rookie and this was my first game after waiting this long it would be a little different," Williams said. "But after playing as many games as I have it's not really a first hit. My first hit was in '04 [as a rookie]. I don't think anything can compare to that."

The Vikings signed Williams to a big-money free-agent contract (which includes nearly $13 million in guarantees) with the belief that he would help improve a pass defense that ranked last in the NFL. Williams earned a reputation as a safety with excellent cover skills in four seasons with Cincinnati.

"We went and got Madieu because Madieu is one of the top safeties in our eyes in the league," defensive backs coach Joe Woods said. "He's an athletic guy who has cover skills. And he has experience. He's been there and seen it all."

The plan, however, veered off course when Williams awoke one day at training camp with pain in his neck. A battery of tests revealed he had a nerve problem. Williams said he doesn't know how it happened, and the team never disclosed the exact nature of his injury, other than to acknowledge that Williams would be sidelined indefinitely.

Williams said he felt comfortable all along with his prognosis and that his neck would heal with time, rehabilitation and a lot of patience. Others around him admit they were concerned about the long-term ramifications.

"Whenever you hear of something like that, you always have speculation or think, 'How serious is it?'" safety Darren Sharper said.

Said defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier: "Any time you have a neck injury it's scary, whether it's a coach or a player or a person in general. You don't like to see people have injuries to their neck. Hopefully we are past that. It's part of our game --injuries -- but you hate to see anybody have a neck injury."

Williams admits he feels fortunate. Neck injuries are never routine. He said he has a "second lease, a second chance" and is now more cognizant of using proper technique and fundamentals when tackling.

"You take a look at guys who have had similar injuries and it's been debilitating," he said. "In my case, it's not. I was able to sit out and let it heal. Now, I'm ready to go."

"He is coming off a major injury in an area of the body that has some repercussions if it was to happen again," Frazier said. "Physically we feel like he is doing fine. Now it is just a matter of once the emotions of the game transpire how he would handle some of those things from a mental standpoint."

His teammates are eager to see, too.

"We've never played with live bullets with Madieu out there, so it's going to be interesting to see," defensive tackle Kevin Williams said.

"He's a great cover guy, and he comes up and hits. He wouldn't have a had neck [injury] if he wasn't coming up and hitting somebody. He's going to do great."

Madieu Williams is equally confident in that. He said his neck feels normal and he's ready to play, with no fear or anxiety.

"It's one of those things where people think you can take a magic wand and touch you and everything is healed," he said. "In this situation it was patience and realizing the body can heal on its own.

"I wasn't frustrated because things happen for a reason. I didn't ask to get hurt and that's the bottom line. I don't think anybody in this situation wants to be hurt. Everybody in that locker room wants to play, including myself. It was unfortunate I was injured, but now I'm looking forward to playing."