Joel Williams (born December 13, 1956) is a former professional American football linebacker who played professionally in the National Football League (NFL) for the

Atlanta Falcons The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...

and the Philadelphia Eagles from 1979 to 1989. As a Falcon in 1980, he led the

National Football Conference The National Football Conference (NFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference ...

(NFC) in

quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in th ...

s with 16. In 1983, he was traded from Atlanta to Philadelphia in exchange for the Eagles' second-round pick in the

1984 NFL Draft The 1984 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 1–2, 1984, at the Omni Park Cent ...

, and played for the Eagles from 1984 to 1986. After a contract dispute, he was traded back to Atlanta for a fifth-round pick in the

1986 NFL Draft The 1986 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 29–30, 1986, at the Marriott Marq ...

and was reunited with Eagles' defensive coordinator Marion Campbell, who had been hired as the Falcons' head coach. Williams finished out the remainder of his career with the Falcons. 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 the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse.

References

External links

* 1956 births Living people American football linebackers Atlanta Falcons players Philadelphia Eagles players Wisconsin–La Crosse Eagles football players Players of American football from Miami {{linebacker-1950s-stub