Joshua Williams (born October 17, 1999) 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 wit ...

cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create turnove ...

for the

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 t ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

(NFL). He played college football at Fayetteville State.

Early years

Williams grew up in

Fayetteville, North Carolina Fayetteville () is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city. Fayettev ...

and attended Jack Britt High School, where he played football and ran track. After graduating from Jack Britt, he completed a

postgraduate year A postgraduate (PG) year is an extra year of secondary coursework at a boarding school following high school graduation, but before entering college. It is a gap year option intended for students who either have not applied or were not admitt ...

at Palmetto Prep in

Columbia, South Carolina Columbia is the capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 census, it is the second-largest city in South Carolina. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, and a portion of the ci ...

College career

Williams primarily played the nickel cornerback position as a freshman at

Fayetteville State University Fayetteville State University (FSU) is a public historically black university in Fayetteville, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina System and the Thurgood Marshall College Fund. History The second oldest state suppo ...

. He moved to outside corner before his sophomore year and finished the season with 32 tackles, one tackle for loss, 11 passes defended, and two interceptions. Williams' junior season in 2020 was canceled due to Covid-19. As a senior, he had 31 tackles with nine passes defended and three interceptions, one of which he returned 32 yards for a touchdown, and was named first-team All-

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. CIAA institutions mostly consist of historically black col ...

. After the conclusion of his college career, Williams played in the

2022 Senior Bowl The 2022 Senior Bowl was a college football all-star game played on February 5, 2022, at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama. The game featured prospects for the 2022 draft of the professional National Football League (NFL), predominant ...

. Williams participated in the 2022

NFL Combine The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footba ...

Professional career

Williams was selected in the fourth round, 135th overall, of the

2022 NFL Draft The 2022 NFL Draft was the 87th edition of the National Football League's annual draft and was held from April 28–30, 2022, at the Caesars Forum on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. The first round was held on Thursday, April 28, and w ...

by the

. He was the first player drafted out of Fayetteville State in the regular portion of the NFL Draft. He was first to be selected in any part of the NFL Draft since Blenda Gay went in the 1973 Supplemental Draft. Williams caught his first career NFL interception in the Week 7 44–23 win over the

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-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 of the league's National ...

. In the AFC Championship against the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The club's home ...

, Williams had an interception on

Joe Burrow Joseph Lee Burrow (born December 10, 1996) is an American football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). Following a stint with Ohio State, Burrow played college football at LSU, where he won the Heis ...

which helped the Chiefs preserve the lead and win 23–20 when the game was tied at 20. The Chiefs reached

Super Bowl LVII Super Bowl LVII is the upcoming championship game of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2022 NFL season. The game is scheduled to be played on February 12, 2023, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. It will be the fourth Super ...

and defeated the

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

38–35. In the Super Bowl, Williams recorded four tackles. In 2023, Williams won his second straight Super Bowl when the Chiefs defeated the

25–22 in Super Bowl LVIII. Williams recorded two tackles in the game.

References

External links

Kansas City Chiefs bioFayetteville State Broncos bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Joshua Living people American football cornerbacks Fayetteville State Broncos football players Players of American football from Fayetteville, North Carolina Kansas City Chiefs players 1999 births