Jordan Cornell Williams (born March 23, 1993) 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 ...

outside linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

for the

DC Defenders The DC Defenders are a professional American football team based in Washington, D.C. The team was founded by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL owned by Dwayne Johnson’s Alpha Acquico. The ...

. He played his senior season of high school football at Gainesville High School in

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gaine ...

. 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 ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

for four years. Williams played in 44 games, of which he started 21, during his college career, recording 66 tackles and 6.5 sacks. After going undrafted in the

2015 NFL Draft The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previous ...

, he signed with the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

and spent time on the team's

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

before being released in September 2015. He was then signed by 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 ...

, where he spent time on both the practice squad and active roster, before being released in September 2016. He was then signed to the Giants' practice squad in December 2016.

Early years

Williams played his first three years of

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

P. K. Yonge Developmental Research School P. K. Yonge Developmental Research School is a K-12 public school affiliated with the University of Florida, in Gainesville, Florida, United States. The student population, selected by lottery, is required to reflect the demographics of the school- ...

. During his junior year, he broke his collarbone in the fifth game and missed the rest of the season. While at P. K. Yonge, he spent time at

middle linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

nose tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

and

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...

. After his junior year at P. K. Yonge, he transferred to play his senior year of football at Gainesville High School in Gainesville. In Williams' senior season in 2010, he played defensive end and tight end while also spending some time at

long snapper In American football, the long snapper (or deep snapper) is a center on special teams whose duty is to snap the football over a longer distance, typically around 15 yards during punts, and 7–8 yards during field goals and extra point attempt ...

. In 2010, he was named to both the Super 11 team and Class 5A-AA First-team of the ''

Gainesville Sun ''The Gainesville Sun'' () is a newspaper published daily in Gainesville, Florida, United States, covering the North-Central portion of the state. The paper is published by Lynni Henderson, the paper's Executive Editor is Douglas Ray and the edi ...

''. Gainesville High finished with an 11–2 record and advanced to the state semifinals. He played in the Florida Athletic Coaches Association (FACA)/

Reebok Reebok International Limited () is an American fitness footwear and clothing manufacturer that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company ...

North-South All Star Football Classic on December 22, 2010. He played at Gainesville High with future Tennessee teammate Trevarris Saulsberry. In the class of 2011, Williams was rated a three-star recruit by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

Scout.com Scout Media is an integrated sports publishing company that produces Internet content covering hundreds of professional and college teams across America. The company was founded in 2001 and was acquired by Fox Sports in 2005. In 2013, Fox Sports ...

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and

247Sports.com 247Sports is an American network of websites that focus mainly on athletic recruitment in college football and basketball. It is owned and operated by Paramount. The website hosts a large network of team-specific subsites, with each subsite be ...

. He was also rated the No. 42 strongside defensive end in the country by Rivals.com, the No. 45 defensive end in the country by Scout.com, the No. 61 defensive end in the country by ESPN.com, and the No. 34 strongside defensive end in the country by 247Sports.com. He was also rated both a three-star recruit and the No. 40 strongside defensive end in the country on 247Sports.com's composite rating, which takes into account the ratings of all the other major recruiting services in the country. He committed to play

for

in October 2010. He also received offers from other schools, some of which included

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

NC State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

South Florida South Florida is the southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the other two are Central Florida and North Florida. South Florida is the southernmost part of th ...

, Vanderbilt,

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

Iowa State Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

UCF The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public research university whose main campus is in unincorporated Orange County, Florida. UCF also has nine smaller regional campuses throughout central Florida. It is part of the State University ...

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

and

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...

College career

Williams played for the

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity college athletics, intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in NCAA Division I, ...

of the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

from 2011 to 2014 under head coaches Derek Dooley and

Butch Jones Lyle Allen "Butch" Jones Jr. (born January 17, 1968) is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at Arkansas State University. Jones previously served as a special assistant to the head coach and offensive analyst at the Univ ...

. He majored in Arts & Sciences at Tennessee. He was a recipient of the Horne Athletic Scholarship. He played in nine games his freshman year in 2011 as a defensive end, recording four tackles and a sack. He was moved to jack linebacker his sophomore season in 2012. Williams appeared in ten games, of which he started in half of them, and totaled two sacks and 17 tackles, four of which were tackles for loss. In April 2012, he was one of four recipients of the team's John Stucky Award, which is given to the "player who shows the most dedication and work discipline to improve strength as selected by the strength and conditioning staff." Williams was shifted back to defensive end for 2013 and played in 12 games, with three starts. He recorded 1.5 sacks and 18 tackles, 1.5 of which were tackles for loss. He was named to the 2013 Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll. He moved to

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

his senior year in 2014. He played in 13 games, all starts, and totaled two sacks, four

pass breakup In American football, a pass deflected, also known as a pass deflection, a pass defended, a pass , a pass knockdown, or a pass breakup, is an incomplete pass that is caused by a defensive player. This is done by slapping or blocking the ball with ...

s and 27 tackles, four of which were tackles for loss. He was named to the 2014 Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll. He played in the 2015

Medal of Honor Bowl The Medal of Honor Bowl was an American college football all-star game played in Charleston, South Carolina, in January 2014 and 2015. The bowl was not sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Primary beneficiaries of th ...

as part of the National Team. Throughout his college career, Williams played in 44 games and started 21 of them. He recorded career totals of 6.5 sacks and 66 tackles, 10.5 of which were tackles for loss.

Professional career

Williams was rated the 54th best defensive end in the

by NFLDraftScout.com.

New York Jets

Williams signed with the

in May 2015 after going undrafted in the 2015 NFL Draft. He was released by the Jets on September 5 and signed to the team's practice squad the following day. He was released by the Jets on September 22, 2015.

Miami Dolphins

Williams was signed to the

' practice squad on October 6, 2015. He was promoted to the active roster on December 5. He made his NFL debut and only appearance of the 2015 season on December 6 against the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

. He was released by the Dolphins on December 26 and signed to the team's practice squad three days later. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Dolphins in January 2016. He was released by the team on September 3 and signed to the Dolphins' practice squad the next day. He was released by the Dolphins on September 20, 2016.

New York Giants

On December 6, 2016, 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. ...

signed Williams to their practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Giants on January 9, 2017. On September 2, 2017, he was waived by the Giants and was signed to the practice squad the next day. He was promoted to the active roster on November 1. He was waived by the Giants on November 7, 2017, and was re-signed to the practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Giants on January 1, 2018. On September 1, 2018, Williams was waived/injured by the Giants and was placed on injured reserve.

Tennessee Titans

On August 1, 2019, Williams signed with 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 ...

. He was waived/injured on August 12, 2019 and was placed on injured reserve. His contract was terminated on July 28, 2020.

Personal life

Williams' father, Keith, was a defensive lineman at

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in the mid-1980s, was drafted by the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

in the 12th round of the

1987 NFL Draft The 1987 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 28–29, 1987, at the Marriot Marq ...

, and later played for the

Chicago Bruisers The Chicago Bruisers were a professional arena football team based in Rosemont, Illinois. They were founded in 1987 as a charter member of the Arena Football League (AFL). They played their home games at Rosemont Horizon. History Founding (1987) ...

Dallas Texans Dallas Texans may refer to: American football *Dallas Texans (NFL), 1952 team in the National Football League *Dallas Texans (AFL), 1960–1962 team that is now the Kansas City Chiefs * Dallas Texans (arena), 1990–1993 Arena Football League team ...

and

Orlando Predators The Orlando Predators were a professional arena football team based in Orlando, Florida and member of the Arena Football League (AFL). The team was most recently owned by Orlando Predators LLC, a company owned by David A. Siegel, and played its ...

of the

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

from 1988 to 1991. Williams's sister, Janine, played volleyball at Florida and UCF. He held the first annual Jordan Williams Skills Camp on July 14, 2016.

References

External links

College stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Jordan Living people 1993 births Players of American football from Gainesville, Florida American football defensive ends American football linebackers American football defensive tackles African-American players of American football Tennessee Volunteers football players New York Jets players Miami Dolphins players New York Giants players Tennessee Titans players 21st-century African-American sportspeople