NewsCore
Wide receiver Kyle Williams was the recipient of a torrent of hateful Twitter posts following his team's loss in the NFC championship game, in which the Giants edged the 49ers 20-17 in overtime following two costly fumbles by Williams.
In the wake of the emotional loss at soggy Candlestick Park, many Niner fans vented their frustrations at the second-year wide receiver, who was handling punt return duties Sunday in the absence of the injured Ted Ginn Jr.
Williams, the son of Chicago White Sox general manager Kenny Williams, coughed up a punt in overtime, setting up the Giants' game-winning field goal.
"I caught the ball, tried to head up field, tried to make a play and it ended up for the worse," Williams said in explaining the play, in which the ball was knocked from his hand by Giants linebacker Jacquian Williams.
The 23-year-old had already drawn the ire of the home faithful early in the fourth quarter, when a Giants punt grazed his leg and was recovered by the Giants. New York turned the miscue into a touchdown and a 17-14 lead.
"@KyleWilliams_10. I hope you, youre wife, kids and family die, you deserve it," read one of the ugly tweets.
But despite his agonizing mistakes, Williams' teammates rallied behind him, refusing to place any blame at the feet of the former Arizona State star.
"Everybody played a part in it. You can't point fingers. That's the easy thing to do. Anybody can point fingers to the next guy, but it's a team game," said offensive tackle Anthony Davis, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
Star linebacker Patrick Willis also offered words of encouragement to his downtrodden teammate via Twitter.
"@KyleWilliams_10 keep ur head up. U r my brother n teammate N I would put u back there all over again. We all lost this game tonight not u," said Willis.
