Tyrell Williams (born February 12, 1992) 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 ...

wide receiver who is a free agent. 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 ...

Western Oregon Western Oregon is a geographical term that is generally taken to mean the part of the U.S. state of Oregon within of the Oregon Coast, on the west side of the crest of the Cascade Range. The term is applied somewhat loosely, however, and is somet ...

and was signed by the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2015. He has also played for the

Las Vegas Raiders The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...

Early years

Williams attended and played

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 ...

Cascade High School Cascade is a name for several high schools in North America, including: * Cascade High School (Idaho), Cascade, Idaho *Cascade High School (Clayton, Indiana) * Cascade High School (Iowa), Cascade, Iowa * Cascade High School (Montana), Cascade, Mo ...

. In addition, he played basketball and track. He earned all-state honors in the three sports during his senior season.

College career

Williams attended and played college football at Western Oregon. In his 5-year career at Western Oregon from 2010-2014, he recorded 184 receptions for 3,169 yards and 24 touchdowns. As a senior, he caught 56 passes for 950 yards and 8 touchdowns.

Professional career

San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers

2015

On May 2, 2015, Williams was signed as an undrafted free agent by the

following 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 ...

. On September 19, 2015, he was waived. On September 22, 2015, he was signed to the Chargers' practice squad. On November 21, 2015, he was promoted to the active roster. On January 3, 2016, Williams made his first catch of the season and caught an 80-yard touchdown reception in the regular season finale. He finished the game with two catches for a total of 90 yards and one touchdown in a 20-27 loss to the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

2016

In the 2016 season, Williams made two catches for 71 yards in the season opener against

AFC West The American Football Conference – Western Division or AFC West is one of the four divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The division comprises the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Las ...

rival

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

. He became the third wide receiver behind

Dontrelle Inman Dontrelle Javaar Inman (born January 31, 1989) is an American gridiron football wide receiver for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Virginia and was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars of ...

and

Travis Benjamin Travis Jayvinski Benjamin (born December 29, 1989) is an American football wide receiver who is a free agent. He played college football at the University of Miami. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the fourth round of the 2012 NFL Draf ...

after starting wide receivers

Keenan Allen Keenan Alexander Allen (born April 27, 1992) is an American football wide receiver for the Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at California before leaving after his junior year. He was drafted ...

and

Stevie Johnson Steven John Johnson Jr. (born July 22, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). Johnson was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL Draf ...

were placed on injured-reserve for the season. The following week, he caught three passes for 61 yards and caught his first touchdown of the season on a 44-yard reception against the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

in Week 2. On October 9, 2016, he had his first career game with over 100 receiving yards against 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 ...

. He finished the game with five receptions for 117 yards and a touchdown in the Chargers' 31-34 loss. Williams finished his sophomore season with 69 catches for 1,059 yards and seven touchdowns.

2017

In 2017, Williams played in all 16 games with 15 starts, recording 43 receptions for 728 yards and four touchdowns.

2018

On March 12, 2018, the Chargers placed a second-round restricted free agent tender on Williams. On April 23, 2018, he signed his tender. In Week 6, he recorded three receptions for 118 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns in a victory over 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 ( ...

. In the 2018 season, he finished with 41 receptions for 653 yards and five touchdowns. In the Wild Card Round victory over 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 had two receptions for nine yards. In the Divisional Round loss to the

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

, he had five receptions for 94 yards.

Oakland / Las Vegas Raiders

2019

On March 13, 2019, Williams signed a four-year, $44 million contract with the Oakland Raiders. Williams made his debut with the Raiders in Week 1 against the

on ''Monday Night Football''. In the game, Williams caught six passes for 105 yards and a touchdown in the 24-16 win. In Week 2 against the

, Williams caught five passes for 46 yards and one touchdown as the Raiders lost 28-10. In Week 3 against 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 ...

, Williams caught three passes for 29 yards and his third receiving touchdown of the season as the Raiders lost 34-14. In Week 4 against the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

, Williams caught three passes for 36 yards and one touchdown in the 31-24 win. This was Williams' fourth consecutive game with a receiving touchdown. Williams was forced to miss the Raiders' next two games due to a foot injury. He made his return in Week 8 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 ...

. In the game, Williams caught three passes for 91 yards and a touchdown in the 27-24 loss. Overall, Willliams finished the 2019 season with 42 receptions for 651 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.

2020 season

On September 1, 2020, Williams was placed on season-ending injured reserve after suffering a torn labrum in his shoulder. On February 24, 2021, Williams was released by the Raiders.

Detroit Lions

2021

On March 9, 2021, Williams signed a one-year deal with 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 ...

. He was placed on injured reserve on September 23, 2021 after suffering a concussion in Week 1. He was released on November 5.

NFL career statistics

References

External links

Las Vegas Raiders bio

Los Angeles Chargers bio

Western Oregon Wolves bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Tyrell 1992 births Living people American football wide receivers Detroit Lions players Los Angeles Chargers players Las Vegas Raiders players Oakland Raiders players Players of American football from Oregon San Diego Chargers players Sportspeople from Salem, Oregon Western Oregon Wolves football players