D'haquille "Duke" Williams (born May 13, 1993) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

. He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

at Auburn. After going undrafted and spending the 2016 offseason with the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

, he made his professional debut in 2017 with the

Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Elks are a professional Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. The club competes in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member of the league's West Division and plays their home games at Commonwealth Stadium. The E ...

. Williams became one of the CFL's most dominant receiving threats, leading the league in receiving in 2018. Following his second season in the CFL, he returned to the United States for another shot at playing in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

. He signed with the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...

in 2019.

Early life

Williams attended East St. John High School in

Reserve, Louisiana Reserve is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is located on the east bank of the Mississippi River. The population was 9,111 at the 2000 United States Census ...

, where he played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

. As a senior, he had 1,495 receiving yards and 25

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...

College career

Williams attended

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (MGCCC) is a Public college, public community college with its main campus in Perkinston, Mississippi. It was founded as Harrison County Agricultural High School in 1912. MGCCC has three campuses and sev ...

from 2012 to 2013. In two years, he had 118 receptions for 2,028 yards and 26 touchdowns. Considered a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Williams was listed as the No. 1 junior college prospect in 2014. He initially committed to

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

but changed to

Auburn University Auburn University (AU or Auburn) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 26,800 undergraduate students, over 6,100 post-graduate students, and a tota ...

. In his first game at Auburn, Williams had nine receptions for 154 yards and a

. He was dismissed from Auburn on October 6, 2015, for an unidentified violation of team rules. William finished the 2015 season with 12 catches for 147 yards and one touchdown.

Professional career

Los Angeles Rams

On May 10, 2016, Williams signed a 3-year deal with the

as an undrafted free agent. On September 3, 2016, he was waived by the Rams as part of final roster cuts.

Edmonton Eskimos

Williams signed with the

of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a Professional gridiron football, professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division (CFL), East Division and f ...

(CFL) before the 2017 season. Williams caught four passes for 110 yards and a touchdown against the

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division (CFL), West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions playe ...

in his professional regular season debut. Williams went on to have a strong first season in the CFL, catching 46 passes for 508 yards with two touchdowns. Williams became a star player in the CFL in

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

, earning a Top Performers of the Month designation for the months of June and July and ultimately finished the season with the most receiving yards in the league with 1,579. On January 5, 2019, Williams was released by the Edmonton Eskimos in order to pursue NFL opportunities.

Buffalo Bills

On January 7, 2019, Williams signed with the

of the NFL. Williams played in all four preseason games for the Bills, catching eight passes for 78 yards with two touchdowns. He was released during final roster cuts on August 31, 2019, and was signed to the practice squad the next day. On October 5, 2019, Williams was promoted to the active roster. He caught 4 passes for 29 yards and the game winning touchdown in a 14–7 Bills win over 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 of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. They play the ...

on October 6, 2019. After suffering a shoulder injury against the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team ...

in week 7, Williams was deactivated for the rest of the season until week 17 when the Bills rested numerous starters against 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 of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

, having already clinched a playoff berth. Williams caught six passes for 108 yards during the 13–6 loss. Williams was placed on the reserve/

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

list by the Bills on July 29, 2020. He was activated on August 9, 2020. Williams was waived as part of final roster cuts on September 5, 2020, but was re-signed to the practice squad the next day. He was elevated to the active roster on October 24 and January 8, 2021, for the team's week 7 and wild card playoff games against the

and

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 of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...

, and reverted to the practice squad after each game. On January 26, 2021, Williams signed a reserves/futures contract with the Bills. He was waived/injured on August 23, 2021, and placed on injured reserve. On August 26 he was released from injured reserve with an injury settlement.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

On October 4, 2021, Williams signed with the

Saskatchewan Roughriders The Saskatchewan Roughriders are a professional Canadian football team based in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Roughriders compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West Division. The Roughriders were founded in 19 ...

. On February 5, 2022, Williams signed a one-year, $260,000 contract extension. On July 20, 2022, the CFL announced that Williams had been suspended for one game after he took the helmet off of

Toronto Argonauts The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and colloquially known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts compete in the East Division (CFL), East Division of t ...

defensive back Shaquille Richardson and threw it at him during warmups for the leagues

Touchdown Atlantic Touchdown Atlantic ( French: ''Touché Atlantique'') is a series of neutral site Canadian Football League games played in the Maritime provinces of Canada. In 2003, the league had struck a committee to examine the feasibility of adding a tent ...

game. He became a free agent upon the expiry of his contract on February 14, 2023.

Hamilton Tiger-Cats

On February 14, 2023, Williams signed with the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

References

External links

Hamilton Tiger-Cats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Duke 1993 births Living people American football wide receivers Players of Canadian football from Louisiana Auburn Tigers football players Buffalo Bills players Canadian football wide receivers Edmonton Elks players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Los Angeles Rams players Mississippi Gulf Coast Bulldogs football players People from LaPlace, Louisiana People from Reserve, Louisiana Players of American football from Louisiana Saskatchewan Roughriders players