FRISCO, Texas -- Terrance Williams catches more grief than just about any other member of the Dallas Cowboys, and a lot of times it's not really justified.
Every dropped pass is met with a groan and the cliché he's a "body catcher," not using his hands to secure the ball. For every game that he isn’t a vital part of the offense, there are those who wonder why the Cowboys brought him back on a four-year deal.
Williams hears it.
“It’s kind of hard when you’re just standing there being the [butt] all the time of people’s jokes and people always talking bad about you,” Williams said.
In last Sunday’s win against the Kansas City Chiefs, Williams caught a career-high nine passes for 141 yards.
It was the first 100-yard performance by a Cowboys receiver this season and the first in a regular-season game by a Dallas wideout since Week 10 last season when Dez Bryant had six catches for 116 yards and a touchdown in a win against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
It was the third 100-yard game of Williams’ career and first since he had 173 yards on eight catches in the 2015 season finale with Kellen Moore at quarterback. The only other 100-yard game of his career came in his rookie year against the Denver Broncos (four catches, 151 yards, one touchdown).
Williams’ biggest catch Sunday was a 56-yarder at the end of the first half that set up Dak Prescott's 10-yard touchdown run. With Prescott breaking containment, Williams sprinted down the field behind the Kansas City defender. It was similar to the play Prescott had made with Brice Butler against Arizona.
“It was just me scrambling and Terrance doing a good job of being in sync with me,” Prescott said. “He went back up the field and the corner lost him and he made a great play.”
It was the second-longest catch of Williams’ career in a regular-season game. He had a 76-yard touchdown in the Cowboys’ wild-card win against the Detroit Lions in 2014.
After catching six passes for 68 yards in the season opener, Williams had not had a game with more than four catches or 47 yards. He had two games last season with more than five catches and only one game with more than 80 yards.
The Cowboys value Williams because of all the little things he does -- like blocking in the run game -- but they needed a game like Sunday from him. He needed it too.
“If you look back at Terrance’s career with us, he’s been a guy that whenever he’s been given opportunities, he typically comes through,” coach Jason Garrett said. “He makes plays. He’s been very productive for us ... We threw it to him nine times and he caught it nine times and made a lot of good plays, not only on the ball, but after he caught the ball. They were significant plays in the game. His mindset and his mentality always is, ‘I’m ready, Coach. I’m ready. I’m ready for my opportunity.’ He has a really good team-first mentality.”