Ryan Gene Williams (born April 9, 1990) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

in the second round of the

2011 NFL draft The 2011 NFL Draft was the 76th installment of the annual NFL Draft, where the franchises of the National Football League select newly eligible football players. Like the 2010 draft, the 2011 draft was held at Radio City Music Hall in New York C ...

. He played

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for the Virginia Tech Hokies.

Early life

Williams attended Stonewall Jackson High School in Manassas, Virginia. He was the starting tailback all four years. He finished with over 2,000 rushing yards, including 1,574 yards as a junior.

College career

As a freshman at Virginia Tech in 2008, Williams was redshirted. As a redshirt freshman in 2009, Williams took over as starting running back after starter Darren Evans suffered a season-ending ACL injury. Through thirteen games he rushed for 1,655 yards on 293 carries, scored 21 touchdowns, and broke multiple Virginia Tech and ACC rushing records in the process - including Virginia Tech's single season rushing yards record and the ACC single season touchdown record with 22 touchdowns. He began the 2010 season as a starter but injured his right hamstring in a game against East Carolina University and was out for three games before coming back against Duke. On January 9, 2011, it was announced that Williams will give up his final 2 years of NCAA eligibility to make himself available for the 2011 NFL Draft.

College statistics

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

Williams was selected by the

in the second round (38th overall) of the

. On August 19, during a pre-season football game against 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 ...

, Williams was injured early in the third quarter in his first run of the game, suffering a ruptured patella tendon in his right knee which cost him the entire 2011 season. On October 9, 2012, he was placed on the injured reserve list with a left shoulder injury, after playing in only 5 games. He was released on May 12, 2014.

Dallas Cowboys

Williams signed as a free agent with the Dallas Cowboys on May 17, 2014. He was cut on August 30 and signed to 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, ...

the following day. On June 28, 2015, Williams was waived/injured, and reverted to Dallas' injured reserve the next day. On September 15, he was released by the Cowboys with an injury settlement.

References

External links

Arizona Cardinals bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Ryan 1990 births Living people Players of American football from Virginia People from Cold Spring, New York Players of American football from New York (state) American football running backs Virginia Tech Hokies football players Arizona Cardinals players Dallas Cowboys players