Kyle Williams' Twitter Account Bombarded By Angry Fans

It's incredibly disappointing to see the words directed at San Francisco 49ers wide receiver and punt returner Kyle Williams. It was Williams who fumbled the last punt of the game, setting up the New York Giants' game-winning field goal in overtime. And it was Williams who was the overwhelming target of angry fans' ire.

With Twitter and social media in general, the ability to instantly react is both a gift and a curse. In Williams' case, fans abused that ability to instantly send him thoughts, bombarding his mentions with threats and other harsh words. To say it was bad would be putting it mildly.

For example:

@KyleWilliams_10. I hope you, youre wife, kids and family die, you deserve it

— JAVIER PASQUEL (@javpasquel) January 23, 2012

There's worse, and much of it isn't fit for public consumption -- littered with swear words, slurs and worse. A check of his mentions or a Twitter search reveals just how bad it got after the game, and how bad it continues to be.

It's embarrassing to see the outbursts and the threats. Sports are emotionally charged by nature, but there's absolutely no reason for a fan or observer to lash out in the way many have at Williams.

There are plenty of 49ers fans tweeting words of encouragement and other positive thoughts, but the actions of those taking aim at Williams were absolutely disgusting and overshadow it all. Be better than this. Think before you speak. And please, don't take it out on a kid who made a mistake in a game -- no matter how high-profile that mistake was.

Edit: Patrick Willis is straight class.

@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.

— Patrick willis (@PatrickWillis52) January 23, 2012