Tag Archive for: Damien Williams

Kansas City Chiefs: Damien Williams saved his best for last

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Patrick Mahomes may have won the Most Valuable Player award in Sunday’s Super Bowl, but it was Damien Williams who stole the show for the Kansas City Chiefs.

A former Miami Dolphins castoff, Williams lit up the Miami field. He rushed the ball 17 times for 104 yards. He also managed to score a touchdown. That touchdown was what sealed the deal for the Kansas City Chiefs. A 38 -yard run, it was his longest of the evening.

For Williams, this was only his third 100-yard rushing game of the season. The last time he accomplished the feat was on December 29. In a season-ending win over the Los Angeles Chargers, Williams rushed the ball 12 times for 124 yards and two touchdowns.

That final December game seems so long ago  now. Williams shined brightly at the Super Bowl. He looked comfortable running the football, and complemented the passing offense of the Kansas City Chiefs very well. He ran hard on every single play, and it seemed like he didn’t lose any steam in the later stages of the game. Most impressively, it always seemed like he made the first guy miss as they attempted to tackle him with futility.

Williams anchored Kansas City Chiefs rushing attack

The more Kansas City fed him the football, the more comfortable he looked. After the first couple of carries, you could definitely tell that he was getting into a rhythm. His first carry of the game was for seven yards. That set the tone for the rest of the game.

He didn’t try to do too much, he just stuck to running the football with confidence and physicality. It’s something that has made him such a dependable running back for Kansas City over the past couple of years. He’s not going to break off a ton of yards every single carry. On the other hand, he is going to keep his feet moving until the whistle is blown. Williams is a physical and gritty running back in every sense of the word.

This was his chance to shine, and he owned the moment. This is something that he has been working towards his entire career, and he certainly has not taken an easy road to get there. With several former Miami Dolphins players winning the Super Bowl, Williams has perhaps the best story.

Time will tell how he fits into Kansas City’s future plans, but chances are, he probably isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. One thing is for certain: Damien Williams saved the best for last.

Damien Williams’ journey goes full circle in preparation for Super Bowl

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Things often come full circle in life. Just ask running back Damien Williams. Who’s again where he started his career, calling Miami home for the next week as he prepares to play in the Super Bowl against the San Francisco 49ers. However, he’s not wearing a Miami Dolphins jersey. Instead, he is donning Kansas City Chiefs colors. His trip from Kansas City to Miami takes around five hours and 35 minutes by plane. Just as the 1,469.7-mile journey seems lengthy, so to has been Williams’ path to get here.

He began his college football career at Arizona Western College. After a few seasons there, he transferred to the University of Oklahoma, a breeding ground for running backs. Here, he encountered his first bump in the road. After a 2012 season saw him rush for 946 yards and 11 touchdowns in 13 games, he followed that up with an impressive 2013 season. Rushing the rock hundred 14 times for 553 yards and seven touchdowns, he put up those numbers in nine games.

Those numbers were indeed not indicative of a setback.

Miami Dolphins save Damien Williams

The setback came in 2013. where he was dismissed from Oklahoma for violating team rules. Head coach Bob Stoops never gave a reason for his dismissal. Thus, his next step was going to the NFL Draft. Surely someone who put up the type of numbers he had, in albeit a brief college career, would be able to find a team rather easily, right?

Not exactly. Williams went undrafted in the 2014 NFL Draft. Luckily for him, the Miami Dolphins came calling. It would be a four-year partnership between the Miami Dolphins and Williams. He didn’t put up eye-popping numbers, but you could tell the talent was there. His best season for Miami came in 2017. He played 11 games, starting four of them. Rushing 46 times for 181 yards, he also proved to be a  bit of a receiving threat. He would also catch 20 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown.

The 2017 season saw him get tendered by Miami for $1.797 million. After Jay Ajayi was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, Williams was named a starter ahead of Kenyan Drake. He showed glimpses of potential, but injuries set him back a bit. A dislocated shoulder in Week 12 gave the starting job to Drake. Drake blossomed as the starter, and that was effectively the end of Williams’s career with the Dolphins.

Since signing with Kansas City in the 2018 offseason, he has paid his dues. From playing behind Kareem Hunt to getting the starting opportunity last season, he has undoubtedly been biding his time. He ended up having a solid 2018 season, rushing the ball 50 times for 256 yards and four touchdowns, the four TDs were a career-high at the time.

Now, he finds himself back in Miami, set to play in the Super Bowl. In what was a running back-by-committee approach this year for Kansas City, he has adjusted to different roles numerous times throughout the season.