David Edward "D. J." Williams Jr (born September 10, 1988) is a former

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 ...

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 ...

. He was selected 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 ...

out of

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

in the fifth round (141st pick overall) in 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 ...

High school career

Williams attended Central Arkansas Christian High School, where his initial athletic interest was

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

. He was encouraged to try

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 ...

by high school coach Tim Perry. DJ was named all-state after his senior season, and was considered a four star recruit by most recruiting services.

College career

Williams played college football for the

Arkansas Razorbacks The Arkansas Razorbacks, also known as the Hogs, are the intercollegiate athletics teams representing the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville. The University of Arkansas student body voted to change the name of the school mascot (ori ...

. He was long considered a competitor for the 2010

John Mackey Award The John Mackey Award is presented annually to college football's most outstanding tight end. Established in 2000 by the Nassau County Sports Commission, the award is given annually to the tight end who best exemplifies the play, sportsmanship, a ...

which is awarded to the nation's most outstanding tight end, along with

Lance Kendricks Lance Ronnie Kendricks (born January 30, 1988) is a former American football tight end. He played college football at Wisconsin, where he was recognized as a consensus All-American. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the second round of t ...

and Michael Egnew. On December 9, 2010 it was announced that DJ was the 2010 John Mackey Award recipient at the 2010 Home Depot College Football Awards Red Carpet show on ESPNU. He also won the 2010 Disney Spirit Award as college football's most inspirational player. DJ was named to the 2010 1st Team All-SEC squad by the coaches and the AP, after amassing 54 receptions for 627 yards and 4 TD for a Razorbacks team that finished 10-3 after a loss to Ohio St in the Sugar Bowl. Arkansas won the Liberty Bowl over East Carolina in his junior year of 2009, finishing with a record of 8-5.

Professional career

Green Bay Packers

Williams was considered one of the best tight end prospects for the

. Williams was selected in the fifth round, with the 141st overall pick, by the

. Williams was released by the Packers on August 31, 2013.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Williams was claimed off waivers by 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 ...

on September 1, 2013. He was released by the Jaguars on November 4, 2013.

New England Patriots

On November 26, 2013, he was signed by 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 ...

. On December 4, 2013, he was waived by the

. Williams re-signed with the Patriots on December 9, 2013, after a season-ending injury to starting tight end

Rob Gronkowski Robert James Gronkowski (born May 14, 1989) is an American former football tight end who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons. Nicknamed "Gronk", Gronkowski played nine seasons for the New England Patriots, then played h ...

. On August 21, 2014, Williams was released by the Patriots.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Williams signed with the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

on November 25, 2014. He was waived on December 2.

Washington Redskins

On August 16, 2015, the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

signed Williams. On September 4, he was waived with an injury settlement for final roster cuts before the start of the regular season.

Career statistics

Personal life

Williams is a member of Pleasant Valley Church of Christ in

Little Rock, Arkansas (The Little Rock, The "Little Rock") , government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager , leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_ ...

. Although like other students Williams could have cited many accolades, he chose this statement alone to appear with his picture in the

yearbook A yearbook, also known as an annual, is a type of a book published annually. One use is to record, highlight, and commemorate the past year of a school. The term also refers to a book of statistics or facts published annually. A yearbook often ...

: "Baptized into Christ." Williams has cited ''

The Passion of the Christ ''The Passion of the Christ'' is a 2004 American epic biblical drama film produced, directed and co-written by Mel Gibson and starring Jim Caviezel as Jesus of Nazareth, Maia Morgenstern as Mary, mother of Jesus, and Monica Bellucci as Mary M ...

'' as exemplifying the way he and his mother, Vicky Williams, and his two sisters overcame his abusive father and other challenges, including on the football field. DJ was working as a co-host on the morning show at Little Rock

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

affiliate television station KARK channel 4, when he was called by the

to join the team during their 2015 pre-season camp. Since he was cut before the regular season began, Williams returned to KARK. Williams has spearheaded "D.J.'s Day of Action" to build awareness and raise funds for Women & Children First, a Little Rock charity that helped Williams' family break the cycle of

domestic violence Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...

when he was a child.

References

External links

Arkansas Razorbacks bioGreen Bay Packers bioTwitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, D. J. 1988 births Living people Players of American football from Dallas Players of American football from Little Rock, Arkansas American football tight ends Arkansas Razorbacks football players Green Bay Packers players Jacksonville Jaguars players New England Patriots players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players Washington Redskins players