“At the end of the day, our goal was to be in the playoffs and that’s not going to happen, so now it’s time to be looking forward to getting healthy,” said Williams, 29, who since the season’s midpoint has been trudging to meetings and playing on a dislocated kneecap that requires surgery.

“As of right now, I can be there for emergency,” Williams explained. “It’s up to [Coach] Jay [Gruden]. But I definitely have to have surgery, and it’s going to be a lengthy recovery so that’s what I’m starting to direct my focus at right now.

AD

AD

Williams said he hopes to delay the surgery until after the holidays, explaining: “I don’t want to be a burden to anybody on Christmas.”

But his plan is to undergo the procedure as soon as possible after Christmas, likely with Robin West, an orthopedic surgeon and the Redskins’ team physician, doing the surgery. “She specializes in the patella/knee cap area,” Williams said, “so, I’ll probably just let her do it. She’s familiar with it”

Despite his massive size and the ferocity of his play, the 6-foot-5, 320-pound Williams admitted he was worried about the procedure. For all the football he has played — in the Texas high school ranks, at Oklahoma and eight seasons as a Redskins starter — Williams has never broken a bone or undergone surgery.

AD

“I’m scared as hell!” Williams said, describing surgery as “uncharted waters.”

AD

“I don’t really know what to expect. It’s a tough process to go through. It’s got to happen though.

Williams explained earlier in the season that the ligament that holds his right kneecap in the socket needs to be reconstructed.

He suffered the knee injury in the first quarter of the Redskins’ Oct. 2 loss at Kansas City, when a player rolled up on the back of his foot, wrenching his knee in the process.

After the bye week that followed, Williams played the next two games. The Redskins still had a chance at making the playoffs, and his primary backup, swing tackle Ty Nsekhe, wasn’t available to spell him after undergoing surgery on a core muscle.

AD

But when the pain hampered his effectiveness, he started sitting occasional games (Weeks 8 and 9, against Dallas and Seattle; Week 12 against the New York Giants and last week against Arizona), hoping the break would help. Nsekhe’s return to the lineup has helped give Williams breathing room.

AD

The disappointment in Williams’s voice was evident Wednesday. His goal each year, he explained, was to have a better season than the one he’d had before. And he trained intensively toward that goal last summer, modifying his diet, as well.

The Redskins are 6-8 heading into Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos (5-9), who boast the NFL’s top-ranked defense.