Boo Williams

Eddie Lee "Boo" Williams (born June 22, 1979) is a former American football tight end who played for the New Orleans Saints from 2001 to 2004. He played college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks as a wide receiver.

Boo Williams
Williams signs an autograph in 2006
No. 82
Position:Tight end, Wide receiver
Personal information
Born: (1979-06-22) June 22, 1979
Tallahassee, Florida
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:265 lb (120 kg)
Career information
High school:Lincoln (Tallahassee, Florida)
College:Arkansas
Undrafted:2001
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career NFL statistics
Receptions-yards:107-1,143
Receiving touchdowns:12
Player stats at NFL.com
Career Arena statistics
Receptions-yards:45-473
Receiving touchdowns:17
Player stats at ArenaFan.com

College career

Williams played two seasons at Coffeyville Community College in Kansas, where he was a two-time All-American catching 83 passes for 1,687 yards and 21 touchdowns as a split end wide receiver. He then transferred to the University of Arkansas for the 1999 and 2000 seasons where he caught 80 receptions for 1,123 yards and 11 touchdowns.[1]

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
HeightWeight40-yard dash10-yard split20-yard split20-yard shuttleThree-cone drillVertical jumpBroad jump
6 ft 4 in
(1.93 m)		 237 lb
(108 kg)		 4.72 s1.63 s2.73 s4.33 s7.10 s35 1⁄1 in
(0.91 m)		9 ft 11 in
(3.02 m)
Measurables are from the 2001 NFL Scouting Combine.[2]

New Orleans Saints

Williams was signed as an undrafted free agent by the New Orleans Saints on April 26, 2001 and soon began a conversion to the tight end position. Waived in September, then signed off the practice squad on October 27, he played in his first NFL game October 28 and made his first start the following week. He finished his first NFL season with 20 receptions for 202 yards and 3 touchdowns.[1]

Williams was the top pass-catching tight end for the Saints in 2002 with 13 receptions for 143 yards and 2 touchdowns.[1] The following year he set career highs with 41 catches for 436 yards and 5 touchdowns, leading the NFC in touchdowns among tight ends.[1] In 2004 Williams started a career-high 8 games.[1]

Williams tore the ACL and MCL in his right knee during a 2005 preseason game and did not play the entire year. He was released by the Saints in February 2006.[3]

New York Giants

Williams was signed by the New York Giants in June 2006 but waived before the regular season began.[3][4]

Kansas City Brigade

On January 19, 2007, Williams signed with the Kansas City Brigade of the Arena Football League. On March 3, 2008, he was placed on recallable waivers by the Brigade.[5]

Life after football

Williams struggled with a multitude of depression, anger, and anxiety issues after retiring from football, the cause of which he attributes to head trauma sustained during his NFL career. After nearly taking his own life in 2011, Williams spent four months at the Crosby Center in San Diego for diagnosis and treatment of the problems he was suffering from. Williams later worked with the Crosby Center to help other NFL players dealing with similar issues post-retirement.[6][7]

Williams uses cannabis to treat the chronic pain and neurological problems that have resulted from his football career.[8] As a member of the Gridiron Cannabis Coalition he has been active in speaking about his experience using cannabis as medicine and advocating for the NFL to change its policy.[9][10]

Williams founded the Boo Williams Athletic Academy, an after-school program providing academic and athletic activities for children to engage in.[7] He has also worked as a bounty hunter and appeared in two episodes of the reality TV show Dog and Beth: On the Hunt.[11]

References
  1. "PLAYER BIO - BOO WILLIAMS". neworleanssaints.com. Archived from the original on March 24, 2006.
  2. "Boo Williams, DS #18 TE, Arkansas". NFL Draft Scout. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  3. Pasquarelli, Len (June 8, 2006). "Giants sign former Saints TE Boo Williams". ESPN. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  4. "Boo Williams - Tight End". Rotoworld. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  5. "Kansas City Brigade". ArenaFan.com. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
  6. Rousseau, Randi (November 24, 2014). "Former Saints player becomes advocate for mental health after NFL run". WDSU 6 News. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  7. Patch, Lianna (January 2, 2015). "After the Game Ends". New Orleans Living Magazine. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  8. Davis, David (November 3, 2016). "After The NFL, Pot Saved Boo Williams' Life. He's Trying To Return The Favor". Vice Sports. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  9. Downs, David (April 8, 2016). "Former NFL players end-run federal marijuana research blockade". Smell the Truth. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  10. Black, Bobby. "Changing the game -- A high-profile San Diege resident, Boo williams is a former NFL star turned cannabis advocate and entrepreneur on a mission". Sensi Magazine (February 2018). Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  11. "Boo Williams". IMDb. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
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