Tramon Vernell Williams Sr. (born March 16, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a cornerback for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, and was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent in 2006. Williams spent much of his NFL career with the Green Bay Packers, playing with them from 2006 to 2014, and again in the 2018, 2019, and 2020 seasons. He was also a member of the Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals, and Baltimore Ravens.
Early life and college Williams played football, basketball and ran track at Assumption High School in Napoleonville, Louisiana, but was overlooked by college football recruiters who instead scouted his teammate and friend Brandon Jacobs. In basketball, he was a four-year letter winner, winning another district title on the hardwood. In his only year of track, he finished second in the state in the long jump, second in the triple jump and third in the high jump.
After graduating in 2001, Williams attended Louisiana Tech University. Originally intending to study electrical engineering, he earned Bachelor's degrees in sociology and computer science. He had joined the Bulldogs football team as a walk-on in his freshman year. He became a starting cornerback by his junior season, and started every game for the Bulldogs during his senior season.
College statistics Season Team GP Tackles Interceptions Fumbles Cmb Solo Ast PD Int Yds Avg Lng TD FF FR 2003 Louisiana Tech 10 3 2 1 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 2004 Louisiana Tech 12 45 20 25 13 4 2 0.5 2 0 0 0 2005 Louisiana Tech 11 43 29 14 19 3 50 16.7 50 0 1 0Total 33 91 51 40 32 7 52 7.4 50 0 1 0Source: LATechSports.com
Professional career
Houston Texans Williams was not among the 23 cornerbacks selected in the 2006 NFL draft and would go undrafted. On May 1, 2006, the Houston Texans signed Williams to a three-year, $1.09 million contract that includes an initial signing bonus of $10,000.
Throughout training camp, Williams competed for a roster spot as a backup cornerback and special teams player against Kevin Garrett, Von Hutchins, Derrick Johnson, and Earthwind Moreland. On September 5, 2006, the Houston Texans released Williams as part of their final roster cuts.
Green Bay Packers (first stint) 2006 On November 29, 2006, the Green Bay Packers signed Williams to their practice squad. He spent the remainder of the 2006 season on their practice squad.
2007 During training camp, Williams competed for a job as a backup cornerback against Jarrett Bush, Patrick Dendy, Frank Walker, Will Blackmon, and Antonio Malone. Head coach Mike McCarthy named Williams the sixth cornerback on the depth chart to begin the regular season, behind Al Harris, Charles Woodson, Jarrett Bush, Frank Walker, and Will Blackmon. Special teams coordinator Mike Stock also selected Williams to be the secondary kick returner and the fourth-string punt returner.
On September 9, 2007, Williams made his professional regular season debut in the Green Bay Packers' season-opener against the Philadelphia Eagles and returned four kickoffs for a total of 100-yards in their 17–16 victory. In Week 5, Williams had six kickoff returns for a total of 173-yards during a 27–20 loss to the Chicago Bears. In Week 6, Williams recorded his first career tackle in the Packers' 17–14 win against the Washington Redskins. By mid-season, Williams had surpassed Blackmon and Walker on the depth chart to become the fourth cornerback./ On November 18, 2007, Williams scored his first career touchdown on a 94–yard punt return during the Packers' 31–17 win against the Carolina Panthers. On November 22, 2007, Williams recorded a season-high four solo tackles and two pass deflections during a 47–36 victory at the Detroit Lions in Week 12. On December 30, 2007, Williams earned his first career start after Charles Woodson injured his toe and was inactive. He made a season-high four solo tackles, two pass deflections, and had his first career interception on a pass thrown by Jon Kitna to wide receiver Shaun McDonald as the Packers defeated the Detroit Lions 34–13. He finished the season with 19 combined tackles (17 solo), four pass deflections, and an interception in 16 games and one start.
The Green Bay Packers finished the 2007 NFL season first in the NFC North with a 13–3 record and received home–field advantage and a first–round bye. On January 12, 2008, Williams appeared in the first career playoff game and made four solo tackles and a pass deflection during a 42–20 win against the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Divisional Round. On January 20, 2007, he made two solo tackles, broke up a pass, and recovered a fumble as the Packers lost 23–20 to the New York Giants, who eventually won Super Bowl XLII, in the NFC Championship.
2008 During training camp, Williams competed against Jarrett Bush and Will Blackmon to be the third cornerback on the depth chart. Defensive coordinator Bob Sanders named Williams the third cornerback on the depth chart to start the regular season, behind starting cornerbacks Al Harris and Charles Woodson.
In Week 2, Williams earned his first start of the season after Al Harris sustained a spleen injury the previous week and made four solo tackles during a 48–25 win at the Detroit Lions. On September 28, 2008, he recorded two combined tackles, broke up two passes, and had his first interception of the season on a pass by quarterback Brian Griese to wide receiver Michael Clayton during a 30–21 loss at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The following week, he collected a season-high 11 combined tackles (ten solo), a pass deflection, and intercepted a pass by Matt Ryan in the Packers' 27–24 loss in Week 5 to the Atlanta Falcons. On October 12, 2008, Williams made a solo tackle, broke up a pass, and an interception in a 27–17 win at the Seattle Seahawks in Week 6. His interception off of Charlie Frye marked his third consecutive game with a pick. On December 7, 2008, he produced six combined tackles (five solo), a season-high tying two pass deflections, recovered a fumble, and had his fifth interception of the season on a pass by Matt Schaub to wide receiver André Davis during a 21–24 loss against the Houston Texans. He finished his sophomore season in with a total of 57 combined tackles (52 solo), 14 pass deflections, and five interceptions in 16 games and nine starts.
2009 On May 13, 2009, the Green Bay Packers signed Williams to a one-year, $900,000 contract that included an initial signing bonus of $375,000. He entered training camp slated to return as the third cornerback on the Packers' depth chart ahead of Will Blackmon, Jarrett Bush, and Josh Bell. He began the 2009 NFL season as the third cornerback on the depth chart, behind cemented starters Charles Woodson and Al Harris.
On September 13, 2009, he appeared in the Green Bay Packers' season–opener against the Chicago Bears and made two solo tackles, a season-high three pass deflections, and had a season–high 67–yard return after intercepting a pass by Jay Cutler to wide receiver Johnny Knox during their 21–15 victory. Williams became the starter prior to Week 8 after Al Harris tore his ACL the previous game. In Week 13, he made five solo tackles and intercepted a pass by Joe Flacco but was also responsible for three pass interference penalties in a 27–14 victory over the Baltimore Ravens. The 106 penalty yards was the most assessed against any player in a game since 2000. In Week 14, Williams recorded six solo tackles and made his first career sack for an eight–yard loss on Jay Cutler during a 21–14 victory at the Chicago Bears. On January 3, 2010, Williams recorded a season-high eight combined tackles (six solo), two pass deflections, and intercepted a pass by Matt Leinart during a 33–7 win at the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17. He finished the season with 55 combined tackles (46 solo), 15 pass deflections, four interceptions, and a sack in 16 games and ten starts.
The Green Bay Packers finished second in their division with an 11–5 record. On January 10, 2010, Williams started his first career playoff game and made eight combined tackles (six solo) during a 51–45 loss at the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Wildcard Game.
2010 On June 16, 2010, the Green Bay Packers signed Williams to a one–year, $3.04 million restricted free agent tender. He entered training camp slated as a starting cornerback as Al Harris was still recovering from his injury and was placed on the PUP list for the first six games before being released midseason. Head coach Mike McCarthy named Williams and Charles Woodson the starting cornerbacks to start the season. Special teams coordinator Shawn Slocum also named him the second punt returner on the depth chart behind Will Blackmon.
On September 12, 2010, Williams started in the Green Bay Packers' season–opener at the Philadelphia Eagles and made three solo tackles and a season–high three pass deflections during a 27–20 victory. In Week 3, Williams recorded a season–high seven solo tackles and a sack in a 20–17 loss at the Chicago Bears. On October 10, 2010, he made one solo tackle, two pass deflections, and intercepted a desperation hail mary pass by Donovan McNabb to wide receiver Anthony Armstrong in the closing seconds in the fourth quarter against the Washington Redskins. They went into overtime and lost 16–13. On October 17, 2010, he collected a season-high eight combined tackles (seven solo), broke up a pass, and made an interception during a 23–20 loss to the Miami Dolphins in Week 6. On November 30, 2010, the Green Bay Packers signed Williams to a four–year, $33.07 million contract extension that included $10.89 million guaranteed upon signing and an initial signing bonus of $10.00 million. On December 26, 2010, he made two combined tackles (one solo), two pass deflections, and had set a career-high with his sixth interception of the season on a pass by Eli Manning to Hakeem Nicks during a 45–17 win against the New York Giants. He started all 16 games for the first time in his career and recorded 57 combined tackles (50 solo), 20 pass deflections, and a career-high six interceptions.
The Green Bay Packers finished the 2010 NFL season second in the NFC North with a 10–6 record, clinching a wildcard position. On January 9, 2011, he started in the NFC Wildcard Game and made four solo tackles, a pass deflection, and intercepted a last second hail mary pass by Michael Vick to wide receiver Riley Cooper to seal a 21–16 victory at the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wildcard Game. On January 16, 2011, Williams made a solo tackle, two pass deflections, intercepted two passes by Matt Ryan, and returned one for a touchdown during a 49–21 victory at the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Divisional Round. Williams scored his touchdown after intercepting a pass by Matt Ryan to wide receiver Roddy White in the closing seconds of the second quarter and returned it 70–yards for a touchdown. On January 20, 2011, Williams was added to the 2011 Pro Bowl roster as a reserve in place of Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel, who pulled out due to an injury.Borzi, Pat. "A Packers Cornerback Is Overlooked No Longer," The New York Times, Saturday, January 22, 2011. The Green Bay Packers defeated the Chicago Bears 21–14 in the NFC Championship. On February 6, 2011, Williams started in Super Bowl XLV and made six combined tackles (three solo) and broke up a pass as the Green Bay Packers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 31–25 to win the Super Bowl. This earned Williams his first career Super Bowl ring.
2011