Two-time Brownlow medalist Greg Williams has slammed young Carlton midfielder Paddy Dow, saying the 20-year-old needs to "pull his finger out and toughen up".

Dow returned to Carlton's side two weeks ago after being sidelined with a knee injury and has managed to average just 10 touches and one tackle per game.

The Blues have since dropped the former No.3 pick for Tuesday's must-win clash against Sydney, with hall of famer Williams grilling Dow's dedication and strength.

"Teaguey (David Teague) has obviously made it hard for him to get a game, which is a good thing because he got a lot of games early,โ€ Williams told SEN Breakfast.

โ€œI thought just watching him โ€ฆ heโ€™s just not desperate enough, not going hard enough and Iโ€™m pretty blunt but I think you get what you deserve - youโ€™ve got to toughen up.

โ€œI remember telling Jobe (Watson) this when he was about 19, I said, โ€˜Youโ€™ve got to play like a man or donโ€™t playโ€™. Jobe was thinking he was going hard but he was going half-hard. Then he started going hard and he turned into a man and the same with Josh Kennedy.

โ€œA lot of these young players, theyโ€™ve got to get to a level to be able to compete with other men and Dowy canโ€™t at the moment.

โ€œHeโ€™s got to pull his finger out and toughen up, itโ€™s as simple as that.

Dow has played 42 games with the Blues since being drafted in 2017.