Dexter Vidal Williams (born January 6, 1997) is an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
running back
A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...
for the
Philadelphia Stars of the
United States Football League
The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
(USFL). He played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
at
Notre Dame and was drafted by the
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...
in the sixth round of the
2019 NFL Draft
The 2019 NFL Draft was the 84th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2019 NFL season. The draft was held on April 25–27 in Nashville, Tennessee. The first round was held on April 2 ...
.
College career
Williams attended and played college football at Notre Dame. He contributed from 2015 to 2018, amassing over 1,600 rushing yards and 20 rushing touchdowns in his collegiate career.
Professional career
Green Bay Packers
Williams was drafted by the
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...
in the sixth round of the
2019 NFL Draft
The 2019 NFL Draft was the 84th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2019 NFL season. The draft was held on April 25–27 in Nashville, Tennessee. The first round was held on April 2 ...
. The Packers traded quarterback
Brett Hundley
Brett Alan Hundley Jr. (born June 15, 1993) is an American football quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the UCLA Bruins, where he was the school's career leader in both total ...
to the
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...
in order to obtain the selection used to select Williams. On May 3, 2019, he signed his rookie contract with the Packers. He made his NFL debut on October 20, 2019 during a Week 7 win over the
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
, rushing three times for two yards. He saw further action on December 29 during a Week 17 win over the
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) North Division. The team play their home games at Ford ...
, temporarily replacing an injured
Aaron Jones.
Williams was waived on September 5, 2020, and re-signed to the practice squad five days later. He was elevated to the active roster on October 24 and November 5 for the team's weeks 7 and 9 games against the
Houston Texans
The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...
and
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
, and reverted to the practice squad after each game.
He was placed on the practice squad/injured list on November 11, 2020, and restored to the practice squad on December 15. He was elevated again on December 26 for the week 16 game against the
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee. The Titans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division, and play their h ...
, and reverted to the practice squad again following the game. He was released on January 23, 2021. On January 25, 2021, Williams signed a reserve/futures contract with the Packers.
On August 31, 2021, Packers released Williams as part of their final roster cuts.
New York Giants
On September 2, 2021, Williams was signed to the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
practice squad. He was released on September 22, 2021. On November 5, 2021, Williams was signed back to the
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
practice squad and released four days later.
Cleveland Browns
Williams was signed to the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
' practice squad on November 10, 2021. He was released on November 23, 2021.
Miami Dolphins
On December 13, 2021, Williams was signed to the
Miami Dolphins
The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...
practice squad.
Cleveland Browns (second stint)
Williams was signed to the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
' active roster off the Dolphins' practice squad on January 5, 2022.
Philadelphia Stars
Williams signed with the
Philadelphia Stars of the
United States Football League
The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
on June 29, 2022.
Green Bay Packers (second stint)
On August 10, 2022, Williams signed with the
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...
He was waived on August 30, 2022.
Philadelphia Stars (second stint)
Williams was selected by the
Arlington Renegades
The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The team was founded as the Dallas Renegades by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL (2020), XFL owne ...
in the
2023 XFL Draft, but re-signed with the Stars of the USFL on November 24, 2022.
NFL career statistics
Personal life
Williams is from
Winter Garden, Florida
Winter Garden is a city west of Downtown Orlando in the western part of Orange County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Its population was 46,051 as of 2019.
History
...
and attended
Olympia High School before transferring to
West Orange High School.
References
External links
Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Dexter
1997 births
Living people
Players of American football from Orlando, Florida
American football running backs
Notre Dame Fighting Irish football players
Green Bay Packers players
New York Giants players
Cleveland Browns players
Miami Dolphins players
Philadelphia Stars (2022) players