Chris Williams (offensive lineman)

Christopher Joseph Williams (born August 26, 1985) is a former American football guard. He played college football at Vanderbilt and was drafted by the Chicago Bears 14th overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. Williams also played for the St. Louis Rams and the Buffalo Bills.

Chris Williams
Williams with the St. Louis Rams in 2013
No. 74, 65, 58
Position:Offensive lineman
Personal information
Born: (1985-08-26) August 26, 1985
Glynn, Louisiana
Height:6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Weight:326 lb (148 kg)
Career information
High school:Catholic
(Baton Rouge, Louisiana)
College:Vanderbilt
NFL Draft:2008 / Round: 1 / Pick: 14
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:72
Games started:57
Player stats at NFL.com

College career

After graduating from Catholic High School (Baton Rouge, Louisiana), Williams attended Vanderbilt where he played in 36 games and started 33 games. In 2007, he was First-team All-Southeastern Conference after allowing just one sack in 12 games. As a junior, Williams was a Second-team All-SEC selection after starting all 12 games at left tackle and allowing a single quarterback sack. The prior season Williams played all twelve games, starting nine at left guard but also playing left tackle. Williams was redshirted as a true freshman and did not see action the following season either.

Professional career

Chicago Bears

Williams was drafted by the Bears 14th overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. On July 23, 2008, it was announced that he had signed a five-year contract with the Bears.[1] Williams missed the camp's first weekend after sustaining a minor back injury.[2] He was later diagnosed with separate injury, a herniated disc, which required minor surgery to repair.[3][3]

Williams started taking part in conditioning and work-out drills in September.[4] On November 2, 2008, he made his professional debut on the special teams in a win against the Detroit Lions.[5] Williams was a starter in 2009, and played at right tackle to accommodate Orlando Pace, whom the team acquired via free agency on April 2, 2009.[6] Smith eventually moved Williams back to left tackle after Pace was faced with inconsistent play and injuries. His first major test was to protect Jay Cutler's blindside against the highly touted Baltimore Ravens defense. The following week, he was paired against Jared Allen of the Minnesota Vikings, one of the League's top defensive lineman and pass rushers.[7] Williams' prevented Allen from sacking Cutler, as the Bears beat the Vikings, 36–30.[8]

Williams started the 2010 season as the Bears starting left tackle. However, he was injured early during the team's second game against the Dallas Cowboys. Williams spent the next several weeks nursing a hamstring injury and missed three games. Upon recovering from his injury, Mike Tice, the team's offensive line coach, decided to move Williams to the left guard position.[9]

Williams was released by the Bears on October 16, 2012.[10]

St. Louis Rams

Williams signed with the St. Louis Rams on October 22, 2012.[11] He re-signed with the team on April 1, 2013 for 2.75 million on a one-year contract.[12]

Buffalo Bills

On March 12, 2014, Williams signed a four-year, $13.5 million contract with the Buffalo Bills. The deal includes $5.5 million in guaranteed money.[13]

His contract was terminated after a failed physical on July 28, 2015.

Personal life

Williams was invited to participate in a shoot-the-puck contest during the Chicago Blackhawks and Calgary Flames playoff on April 18, 2009.[14] During the contest, he successfully shot two pucks into two small openings in a goal from center ice.[14] Williams claims that he had never shot a puck prior to the contest.[14] Williams is married and has two children, a daughter and a son.

References
  1. Larry Mayer (July 23, 2008). "First-round draft pick agrees to five-year contract". chicagobears.com. Archived from the original on July 24, 2008. Retrieved July 23, 2008.
  2. Trowbridge, Matt (July 24, 2008). "Bears' top pick leaves practice with stiff back". Rockford Register Star. Archived from the original on September 14, 2012. Retrieved August 3, 2008.
  3. Biggs, Brad (August 7, 2008). "First-round pick Williams has back surgery". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on August 8, 2008. Retrieved August 8, 2008.
  4. Mayer, Larry (September 25, 2008). "Williams takes first major step back on road to recovery". chicagobears.com. Archived from the original on September 25, 2008. Retrieved September 25, 2008.
  5. "Bears rally behind Grossman to keep Lions winless". Associated Press. November 2, 2008. Archived from the original on November 6, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2008.
  6. Mayer, Larry (April 9, 2009). "Williams doesn't mind making move from left to right tackle". ChicagoBears.com. Archived from the original on April 11, 2009. Retrieved April 11, 2009.
  7. Biggs, Brad (December 24, 2009). "Big test for Chris Williams against Minnesota Vikings". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  8. Seligman, Andrew (December 29, 2009). "Cutler leads Bears over Vikings, 36–30 in OT". Associated Press. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved December 29, 2009.
  9. Seligman, Andrew. "Back from hamstring injury, Bears' Williams could be at left guard instead of tackle". LA Times. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
  10. Mayer, Larry. "Bears release 2008 first-round pick Chris Williams". chicagobears.com. Archived from the original on October 18, 2012. Retrieved October 16, 2012.
  11. "Chris Williams signed by St. Louis Rams to help O-line". National Football League. 2012-10-22. Retrieved 2012-10-22.
  12. Biggs, Brad (2013-04-01). "Chris Williams gets another shot in St. Louis". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 2013-04-03.
  13. Chris Williams, Buffalo Bills strike four-year contract
  14. Mayer, Larry (April 17, 2009). "Hockey novice Williams scores two goals on two shots". ChicagoBears.com. Archived from the original on April 21, 2009. Retrieved April 19, 2009.
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