Antonio Williams (American football)
New York Giants | |||||||||||||
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Position: | Running back | ||||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||||
Born: | New London, North Carolina | October 22, 1997||||||||||||
Height: | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) | ||||||||||||
Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) | ||||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||||
High school: | North Stanly (New London, North Carolina) | ||||||||||||
College: | North Carolina | ||||||||||||
Undrafted: | 2020 | ||||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||||
Career NFL statistics as of Week 10, 2021 | |||||||||||||
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Player stats at NFL.com |
Antonio Williams (born October 22, 1997) is an American football running back for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ohio State and North Carolina.
College career[]
Williams began his collegiate career at Ohio State. He spent two seasons with the Buckeyes and rushed for 290 yards and three touchdowns as a sophomore while serving as the team's third running back behind J. K. Dobbins and Mike Weber.[1] Williams announced that he would be transferring to North Carolina in the spring of his sophomore year.[2]
Following his transfer, Williams was granted a hardship waiver from the NCAA and was not required to sit out his junior season.[3] He started seven games in his first season with the Tar Heels and finished as the team's second-leading rusher with 504 yards and five touchdowns.[4] As a senior, Williams split carries with Michael Carter and Javonte Williams and rushed for 322 yards and three touchdowns on 48 carries.[5]
Professional career[]
Buffalo Bills[]
Williams was signed by the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent on May 8, 2020.[6] He was waived by the Bills on August 5, but re-signed on August 30, 2020.[7] Williams was waived during final roster cuts and was signed to the team's practice squad on September 6 before again being released. Williams was again re-signed to the practice squad on September 23, 2020, and released on October 3 only to return to the unit on October 8.[8][9] He was elevated to the active roster on January 2, 2021, for the team's Week 17 game against the Miami Dolphins, and reverted to the practice squad after the game.[10] He made his NFL debut in the game, rushing for a team-high 63 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries while catching a pass for 20 yards in a 56–26 win.[11] He was elevated again on January 15 for the team's divisional playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens, and reverted to the practice squad again following the game.[12] He signed a reserve/futures contract with the Bills on January 26, 2021.[13]
On August 31, 2021, Williams was waived by the Bills and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.[14][15]
New York Giants[]
On January 27, 2022, Williams signed a futures contract with the New York Giants.[16]
Personal life[]
A NASCAR fan since his youth, Williams is an advisor to NASCAR Xfinity Series driver Joe Graf Jr.; the two befriended each other through a mutual acquaintance, and Williams joined Graf's SS-Green Light Racing team prior to the 2021 racing season.[17]
References[]
- ^ Jablonski, David (April 10, 2018). "Antonio Williams waits patiently for his chance with Buckeyes". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ "UNC adding Ohio State RB Antonio Williams as transfer". ESPN.com. Associated Press. April 24, 2018. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ Trendel, Avery (July 27, 2018). "UNC RB Antonio Williams Cleared to Play in 2018, Will Not Have to Sit Out After Transferring From Ohio State". Chapelboro.com. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ Alexander, Jonathan M. (November 29, 2019). "Why Mack Brown thinks running back Antonio Williams is the MVP of this UNC team". The News & Observer. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ Murphy, Sean (July 17, 2020). "91 players in 91 days: Running back Antonio Williams". BuffaloRumblings.com. SB Nation. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ Wojton, Nick (May 8, 2020). "Bills sign 8 undrafted rookie free agents". Bills Wire. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
- ^ Talbot, Ryan (August 30, 2020). "Antonio Williams: Buffalo Bills to re-sign UDFA running back". The Post-Standard. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
- ^ "Bills bring back tight end Nate Becker and RB Antonio Williams to practice squad". BuffaloBills.com. September 23, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
- ^ Bouda, Nate (October 8, 2020). "Bills Re-Sign RB Antonio Williams To Practice Squad". NFLTradeRumors.co. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ "Tyler Kroft placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list + four players elevated for Bills vs. Dolphins". BuffaloBills.com. January 2, 2021. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
- ^ Talbot, Ryan (January 3, 2021). "Who is Antonio Williams? Bills UDFA RB scores twice in Buffalo's Week 17 win". The Post-Standard. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
- ^ Alper, Josh (January 15, 2021). "Bills promote Antonio Williams, Dane Jackson". ProFootballTalk. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
- ^ "Bills signed these 13 players to reserve/future contracts". BuffaloBills.com. January 26, 2021. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
- ^ "Bills release 23 players to set the initial 2021 53-man roster". BuffaloBills.com. August 31, 2021.
- ^ "Bills sign 15 players to the 2021 practice squad". BuffaloBills.com. September 1, 2021.
- ^ "Giants roster move: Former Bills running back Antonio Williams signs futures contract". Big Blue View. SB Nation. January 27, 2022.
- ^ Utter, Jim (February 10, 2021). "NFL's Antonio Williams to invest in NASCAR driver Joe Graf Jr". Motorsport Network. Motorsport Network. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
External links[]
- 1997 births
- Living people
- 21st-century African-American sportspeople
- American football running backs
- Players of American football from North Carolina
- North Carolina Tar Heels football players
- Buffalo Bills players
- Ohio State Buckeyes football players
- African-American players of American football
- New York Giants players