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| No. 75 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Positions | Tackle,Guard | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born | (1945-10-27)October 27, 1945 Jackson, Mississippi, U.S. | ||||||
| Died | July 8, 2012(2012-07-08) (aged 66) Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. | ||||||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||
| Weight | 256 lb (116 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school | Edward D. Libbey High School | ||||||
| College | Minnesota | ||||||
| NFL draft | 1968: 1st round, 23rd overall pick | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| 1968–1971 | Baltimore Colts | ||||||
| 1972–1979 | Los Angeles Rams | ||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||
| |||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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John McKay Williams (October 27, 1945[1] – July 8, 2012) was aNational Football League (NFL)offensive lineman from 1968 through 1979. During that span he appeared in twoSuper Bowls:Super Bowl III andSuper Bowl V for theBaltimore Colts; but missedSuper Bowl XIV for theLos Angeles Rams because of injury. He playedcollege football at theUniversity of Minnesota where he was a First-team All-Big Ten tackle in 1967 and led the Gophers to the Big Ten title. He was one of the fifteenplaintiffs inMackey v. National Football League in which JudgeEarl R. Larson declared that theRozelle rule was a violation ofantitrust laws on December 30, 1975.[2][3] Williams died on July 8, 2012, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the age of 66, while out for a walk.[4] He had recently been the recipient of a kidney transplant.
Williams was born on October 27, 1945, inJackson, Mississippi. He was one of nine children.[5][6] Williams attendedEdward D. Libbey High School inToledo, Ohio. He was an All-City high school selection in both football and basketball; while also playing baseball and throwingshot put on thetrack team. He was a 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 215 lb. (97.5 kg)fullback andlinebacker on the football team as a junior and senior, and had six 100-yard rushing games as a senior. In 1994, he was inducted into Toledo's City League Hall of Fame.[6]
Williams originally planned to attendOhio State University, but after visiting theUniversity of Minnesota he fell in love with the school and changed his plans. Williams graduated from Minnesota in 1969 with aBachelor of Science degree in education. In the late 1970s, he would return with his family to live in Minnesota and practice dentistry, after his professional football career ended.[6]
At Minnesota, he played fullback,defensive end andoffensive tackle on theGolden Gophers' football team, under coachMurray Warmath. He played fullback as a sophomore, until suffering a hamstring injury that ended his season. When he returned to the team as a junior, he weighed 245-250 pounds (111.1-113.4 kg) and was moved to defensive end, where he finished the season second in the Big Ten intackles for loss. As a senior, he was moved to offensive tackle, and was selected first-team All-Big Ten at offensive tackle by theAssociated Press (AP) andUnited Press International (UPI).[6][7][8][9] He was a UPI honorable mentionAll-American at tackle for the 1967 season.[10]
The1967 Golden Gophers tiedIndiana andPurdue for the best record within the Big Ten (6–1), and went 8–2 overall; though it was Indiana that represented the Big Ten in theRose Bowl that year.[11][8] Among his teammates was future NFL Hall of Fame tight endCharlie Sanders, who like Williams was switched from defense to offense in 1967 (to tight end).[7][12][13]
Williams was selected to play in theEast-West Shrine game, theCoaches All-America Game, and the 1968Chicago College All-Star Game against theGreen Bay Packers.[14][15][6]
TheBaltimore Colts selected Williams in the first round of the1968 NFL/AFL draft, 23rd overall.[16] In 1968, Williams played in all 14 games for the 13–1 Colts, but did not start any games for the team that would win theNFL title (34–0 over theCleveland Browns), but lose to theNew York Jets inSuper Bowl III.[5][17][18][19] Williams was on the Colts Super Bowl III player roster but was not a starter.[20][21] Williams started seven games at rightguard in 1969, after starting left guardGlenn Ressler was injured and starting right guardDan Sullivan moved to left guard to replace Ressler.[22][23] Wililiams started all 14 games at right guard in both 1970 and 1971, when Ressler returned and Sullivan moved to right tackle.[5][23][24]
He was the starting right guard inSuper Bowl V, when the Colts defeated theDallas Cowboys, 16–13.[25] He had a fine game during the Super Bowl, playing against Cowboys tackleJethro Pugh, who had played well on run defense, but never reached the Colts' quarterbacks. Williams had an especially good month, his wife giving birth to their son less than two weeks earlier, in addition to winning the Super Bowl.[26]
In 1972,Robert Irsay became the Colts' owner by trading theLos Angeles Rams franchise to former Colts ownerCarroll Rosenbloom (who had owned the Colts for 19 years). Before the 1972 season started, Irsay's new general managerJoe Thomas quickly traded Williams, who had played out his option, for the Rams 1974 No. 1 draft selection (who would be receiverRoger Carr, with the 24th pick).[27][28][29]
He played behind Rams starting right tackleHarry Schuh in 1972.[30] He was the Rams starting right tackle from 1973-78, starting in all 86 regular season games during that period.[5] He tore a calf muscle in 1979, his final NFL season, and played in only 11 games, starting just seven at guard.[31] The1979 Rams reachedSuper Bowl XIV, but Williams was unable to play, withDennis Harrah andKent Hill starting as the guards and future Hall of FamerJackie Slater starting at right tackle, as he did during the season.[32][33] Williams was not on the Rams’ roster for Super Bowl XIV. His final appearance came in a win vs. theAtlanta Falcons onMonday Night Football in week 12.[34][6]
In 1974, Williams was one of 15 NFL players who brought a lawsuit against the NFL for antitrust violations, chiefly involving imposition of theRozelle Rule as a means to limit free agency for NFL players. The case was known asMackey v. NFL. The players won the suit in 1975, after a 55 day trial before MinnesotaUnited States District Court JudgeEarl Larson but gave up some of the rights gained when negotiating a collective bargaining agreement two years later.[35]
During the offseasons from 1972-74 he attended the University of Maryland in Baltimore and part time thereafter, eventually graduating from itsSchool of Dentistry in 1978. Williams also obtained a private pilot's license. He returned to Minnesota in the late 1970s to live there, and practice as a dentist.[6][31]
In 1983, he served less than a year in prison in connection with selling cocaine; however in 1992 he received an award as Minneapolis’s city volunteer of the year for his work on urban revitalization. He also became aforensic dentist and was among those identifying the dead after theSeptember 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York City.[31]
He died on July 8, 2012, while taking a walk near his Minneapolis home, having recently received a kidney transplant.[31]
