William Mason Turner (born October 17, 1991) 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 ...

offensive tackle Offensive may refer to: * Offensive (military), type of military operation * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Fighting words, spoken words which would have a tendency to cause acts of violence by the ...

. He was selected by 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 the third round of the

2014 NFL draft The 2014 NFL draft was the 79th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players to the league. The draft, officially the "Player Selection Meeting", was held at Radio City Music Hall in New Y ...

. 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 North Dakota State.

Early life

Turner attended Mounds View High School in

Arden Hills, Minnesota Arden Hills ( ) is a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 9,939 at the 2020 census. Bethel University and its seminary is located in the city. Also, the campus of University of Northwestern – St. Paul straddl ...

. He was an all-state lineman for the Mustangs

team, helping compile a 26–8 record, winning section titles, and advancing to state playoffs all three years during his career.

College career

Turner attended

North Dakota State University North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota, United States. It was ...

from 2010 to 2013. In 2010, Turner started in 12 games. In 2011, he started 14 games. In 2012, Turner started in 15 games and was named to the all-

Missouri Valley Football Conference The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), formerly the Gateway Football Conference, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern United States. It participates in the National Collegiate A ...

(MVFC) first-team. In 2013, he made all 15 starts at

left tackle A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and Defensive tackle, defense. In the modern system of ...

and was responsible for zero

quarterback sacks In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the ...

. He was named All-MVFC first-team and two-time Offensive Lineman of the Week. He was a consensus

Football Championship Subdivision The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Bowl Subdivision (F ...

(FCS)

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

in 2012 and 2013 and was part of three FCS national championship teams. He participated in the

2014 Senior Bowl The 2014 Senior Bowl was an all-star college football exhibition game featured players from the 2013 college football season, and prospects for the 2014 draft of the professional National Football League (NFL). The game concluded the post-seaso ...

. He was one of the top small-school prospects of the

Professional career

Pre-draft

Projected as a second-to-third round selection by ''

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'', Turner was the highest selected North Dakota State player since Lamar Gordon in 2002.

Miami Dolphins

Turner was selected in the third round (67th overall) by the

. On October 9, 2016, Turner was forced into the starting lineup with starting left tackle, Branden Albert, out with an illness, and backup left tackle,

Laremy Tunsil Laremy Alexander Tunsil (born August 2, 1994) is an American professional football offensive tackle for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ole Miss Rebels and was selected by the ...

, out with an injured ankle. After giving up 3 sacks and 2 quarterback pressures in a game against 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 ...

, Turner was released by the Dolphins, alongside Dallas Thomas.

Baltimore Ravens

On October 12, 2016, Turner was claimed off waivers by the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...

, but was released three days later.

Denver Broncos (first stint)

On October 17, 2016, Turner was claimed off waivers by the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

. On October 17, 2017, Turner was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in ...

after suffering a broken hand in Week 6 against the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...

. On March 17, 2018, Turner re-signed with the Broncos. He started 11 games, four at

right tackle A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, a tackle played on both offense and Defensive tackle, defense. In the modern system of ...

in place of an injured Jared Veldheer, and the final seven games of the year at left guard in place of an injured Max Garcia.

Green Bay Packers

On March 14, 2019, Turner signed a four-year, $28 million contract with 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 of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They ar ...

. Turner started the first thirteen games of the 2021 season at right tackle before sustaining a knee injury during the Packers' week 14 game against the

Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. They are one of two remaining ...

and missing the rest of the regular season. Dennis Kelly started at right tackle for the remainder of the regular season. The Packers finished the season with the No. 1 seed in the

National Football Conference The National Football Conference (NFC) is a conference of the National Football League (NFL), the highest level of professional American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference (AFC), each h ...

(NFC) with a 13–4 record. Upon his return from injury, he started at left tackle during the Packers' divisional round playoff loss to the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners and nicknamed the Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member ...

in place of the injured David Bakhtiari, while Kelly started at right tackle. On March 14, 2022, the Packers released Turner.

Denver Broncos (second stint)

On March 28, 2022, Turner signed a one-year contract with the Broncos. He was placed on injured reserve on November 15, 2022. He was activated on December 17. During the off-season, he became a free agent and reported that he doubted he would be re-signed by the Broncos.

New York Jets

On May 1, 2023, 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 ...

signed Turner to a one-year deal with a max of $3.15M, reuniting him with former Packers teammate,

Aaron Rodgers Aaron Charles Rodgers (born December 2, 1983) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the California Golden Bears foo ...

, and former Packers offensive coordinator & former Broncos head coach, Nathaniel Hackett.

Personal life

Turner's father, Maurice Turner, was a former NFL

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

. His half-brother, Bryan Kehl, played in the NFL as a

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and typically line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and so back up the defensive linemen. They play closer to the line ...

References

External links

North Dakota State bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Billy 1991 births Living people People from Shoreview, Minnesota Sportspeople from Ramsey County, Minnesota Players of American football from Minnesota American football offensive tackles North Dakota State Bison football players Miami Dolphins players Baltimore Ravens players Denver Broncos players Green Bay Packers players New York Jets players