A Force: Panthers' Williams having big year

This is all still sinking in to DeAngelo Williams.

He wouldn't have predicted it, but upon further review he can understand how and why it has happened.

Williams will go into the Carolina Panthers' regular-season finale against the New Orleans Saints this afternoon leading the NFL in touchdowns. He ranks fourth in the league in rushing.

He needs 107 yards to break the Panthers' single-season rushing record, set by Stephen Davis in the 2003 Super Bowl season.

It's one of several best-case scenarios that have worked out for the Panthers this season, and it's one of the biggest reasons why the Panthers are 11-4 and can clinch the NFC South title with a victory today.

"I didn't think I would (lead the league in touchdowns)," Williams said. "But I did think with this offense, anything's possible."

Williams' teammates have gone so far in the past week as to offer his name up for league MVP consideration. That might be a stretch, but it shows the respect they have for Williams.

"If he can get a win and he has another one of those games, I'd be on that (MVP) bandwagon in a heartbeat," quarterback Jake Delhomme said. "He's running outstanding. He's making guys miss. He's playing great. I don't want to say too many good things, but he's playing really good football right now."

Williams will come into today's game with 1,337 rushing yards, which ranks fourth in the NFL behind Minnesota's Adrian Peterson, Atlanta's Michael Turner and Washington's Clinton Portis. Davis holds the Panthers' franchise record of 1,444.

Williams leads the league with 20 touchdowns, including a league-leading 18 rushing. He has rushed for touchdowns in eight straight games, including four last Sunday in the Panthers' 34-28 overtime loss to the New York Giants.

He has rushed for more than 100 yards on seven occasions, including six times in the past eight games, with a franchise-record 186 in a win over Tampa Bay three weeks ago.

He also leads the league in average yards per carry at 5.4, on 248 carries.

And he has done it while splitting time with rookie Jonathan Stewart, who has rushed for 780 yards on 167 carries.

Williams hadn't come close to those totals in either of his first two seasons, after being the Panthers' first-round draft pick in 2006. He gained 501 yards as a rookie, with one game over 100 yards, and then he gained 717 yards last season with two 100-yard plus performances.

So he should double his previous career-high totals by the end of today.

Williams gives credit to his offensive line, to fullback Brad Hoover, to the wide receivers, and even to Stewart for his success this season. That's what good backs do, show appreciation to the guys throwing the blocks.

His teammates say they have seen a more mature, more focused Williams throughout the season. He took a serious approach to offseason conditioning drills, and he made the transition to veteran leader once the Panthers released DeShaun Foster and drafted Stewart.

"He's always worked hard," Delhomme said. "That needs to be made out -- he's always worked hard. But he's gone to the next level. To me, it's going from being pretty good to being on the cusp of being great. In practice, in the weight room, he knows. It goes to show you what hard work does. It's impressive."

Some of the maturity, Williams admits, came after a pep talk of sorts last season from Vinny Testaverde, who came out of retirement after Delhomme was lost with an elbow injury. Testaverde played for seven different franchises over the course of a 21-year career. He saw unfulfilled promise in Williams, and he let Williams know it, in a constructive way.

"I think he probably impacted my season the most this year than anybody because of the conversation that we had before he left," Williams said. "He is going to tell you how it is. He left me with some things that I'm going to leave Stew with whenever it's my time to hang it up, because he's very inspirational.

"Everything he said to me made perfect sense. From the film room down just to work ethic, and everything of that nature. He really left me with some things that really touched me and stayed on my heart."

Williams said he also found his comfort zone in the Panthers' offense, which changed significantly when Dan Henning was fired and Jeff Davidson took over as offensive coordinator before the 2007 season.

"When Jeff got here two years ago, we weren't really comfortable with his offense," Williams said. "It was kind of different for us. We were trying to get a feeling for it, and then Jake goes down. He's our captain, our leader, our field general. We kind of did the switcheroo with the quarterback situation there. Not to make excuses, but it was a little difficult for us to have our offense going and having the quarterbacks come in and out. Having Jake back in there and feeling comfortable in this offense, we're believing in this system now."

And, Williams said he has finally adjusted to the NFL and gotten a feel for opposing defenses.

"It's a different feel to the game once you get to this level," he said. "I've got a better feel for the game than I did my first two years. I know where guys are on the field now. Last year, and the year before, when guys dove at my legs, I didn't really anticipate that or try to counter that. Now, it's just kind of instinctive. I know I have a feel for the game."

By the end of today, he could have more records, too.

■ John Delong can be reached at jdelong@wsjournal.com.