 Williams (#41) celebrates a USC victory with teammateTaylor Mays (#2) | |||||||||
| No. 53, 93, 56 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Linebacker | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | (1984-12-25)December 25, 1984 (age 41) Vacaville, California, U.S. | ||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||
| Listed weight | 244 lb (111 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| High school | Vacaville | ||||||||
| College | USC | ||||||||
| NFL draft | 2008: 5th round, 155th overall pick | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
* Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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Thomas Ray Williams (born December 25, 1984) is an American former professionalfootball player who was alinebacker in theNational Football League (NFL). He was selected by theJacksonville Jaguars in the fifth round of the2008 NFL draft. He playedcollege football for theUSC Trojans. Williams has been a member of theSeattle Seahawks,New England Patriots,Buffalo Bills,Carolina Panthers, andTampa Bay Buccaneers. In 2011, he suffered a neck injury that ended his season. The next year, the same injury forced him to retire from his football career.
Williams is now amotivational speaker. He has traveled worldwide speaking to different corporations, athletes and students on how to "fully maximize their potential." In 2014 Thomas R. Williams became a published author after writing hisautobiography, "Permission to DREAM." Williams is also a collegiate guest lecturer.
Thomas works close with theWounded Warrior Project. He focuses on helping soldiers transitioning back from combat.
Williams playedhigh school football atVacaville High School. When it came to deciding where to attend college, his final choices wereUniversity of Notre Dame and theUniversity of Southern California. Finding them equals in many areas; Williams decided on USC due in part to the diversity of theLos Angeles area as well as the career networking, as he was uncertain he would be able to eventually move on to the NFL.[1]
Thomas R. Williams entered USC in the 2003 recruiting class that includedReggie Bush andLenDale White.[2] Williamsstarted 14 games at 3 different positions (includingfullback) while playingcollege football at USC. He was all-Pac-10 honorable mention in 2007 and was invited to theEast West Shrine Game and theHula Bowl. Williams career stats include, 74 tackles, 1 sack, 3 fumbles forced, 5 passes defensed, 5 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions, and 37 interception return yards. In 2007 Williams had 56 tackles. He had 6 tackles in the2008 Rose Bowl.
During his time with the Trojans, Williams received guidance and feedback from veteran linebackers such asLofa Tatupu,Matt Grootegoed,Dallas Sartz,Collin Ashton, andOscar Lua. In order to see more playing time against the more experienced linebackers ahead of him, Williams focused and excelled atspecial teams play, particularly kickoff coverage.[1] During hisredshirt freshman year he was an active member of the2004 National Championship team, where he played behind Sartz at the strong-side spot.[2] Early in the 2004 season, Williams was nicknamed "The Hitman" by coachPete Carroll for his performance on special teams; the name stuck with him for his career at USC.[1]
During the2005 season, Williams again backed up Sartz, but moved into the starting lineup for six games after Sartz suffered a shoulder injury; he also started twice in the middle and learned the weak-side responsibilities as well.[2] During the2006 season, when the Trojans fullbacks were decimated by injury, members of the offense such asRyan Kalil,Sam Baker, andJohn David Booty, asked him to switch positions to fullback, a position he had played in high school.[1] Thus Williams started twice at fullback and played several games that season on both offense and defense.[2] Over the years, Williams played all three linebacker positions.[1] Williams teammates voted him the team's most inspirational player in the 2007 season; he finished the regular season as the third-leading tackler among linebackers with 3½ tackles for losses, an interception and two forced fumbles on a defense that ranked second nationally.[2]
Thomas R. Williams graduated from USC in May 2008 with a degree insociology.[1]
Williams was invited to theNFL Combine.
Williams was selected 155th overall by theJacksonville Jaguars in the2008 NFL draft; he was the first person from his high school to be drafted in the NFL sinceVince Newsome was drafted 97th overall in1983.[3][4] Williams signed a four-year contract with the Jaguars.[5] He played in six games for the Jaguars in 2008, recording one tackle. He was waived on September 5, 2009.
Williams was signed to theSeattle Seahawkspractice squad on September 8, 2009. He was released on September 30.
Williams was signed to theNew England Patriots practice squad on November 10, 2009. He was promoted to the Patriots' active roster on January 6, 2010, in advance of their playoff game against theBaltimore Ravens, for which he was inactive. He was waived during final cuts on September 4, 2010.
Williams was signed to theBuffalo Bills practice squad on October 12, 2010 and later added to the active roster. He played in two games for the Bills before being waived on December 11, 2010.
Williams was signed to theCarolina Panthers practice squad on December 15, 2010, and was released on March 13, 2012.[6]
On July 26, 2012, Williams was signed to a 2-year deal by theTampa Bay Buccaneers.