who were receivers

Changing It Up

John L. Williams runs in a game for the Seahawks. Herald file photo

This is the 14th of 22 chapters in "The Game of My Life," about former Seattle Seahawks and the games they remember most. For a look at the series, jump to the end of this story. W

hile John L. Williams was a wishbone tailback at Palatka High School in Palatka, Fla., no one would have guessed that he would develop into one of the best three dimensional backs in NFL history. Williams did a lot of things well during his storied NFL career. Running is what he did better than anything else. W

ho needs organized football?That's what John L. Williams thought during a childhood that included hours upon hours of street ball played with neighborhood friends. Williams decided to go out for the football team, only to find out that it might not be the smooth transition he expected."They wouldn't let me play quarterback because I was too big, so I had to play line," said Williams, who was a sturdy 175 pounder in ninth grade. "I told them I didn't want to play line, and they said, 'Well, that's what you have to play.' So I said, 'I'm quitting.'"

John L. Williams works for a few more yards in a game for the Seahawks. Herald file photo

Fortunately for Palatka High School not to mention the hundreds of college and NFL teammates Williams would have over the years he came back two days later and offered to play running back. He played the entire fourth quarter of the season finale, and the writing was on the wall for Palatka's future. because of a fear of flying. "I couldn't get on a plane after I saw that. That stopped my trip right there."Williams, by then a 215 pound tailback, opted instead to attend the University of Florida, which was just a 30 minute drive away in Gainesville. Offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan recruited him, seeing the potential of a running back who could catch the ball out of the backfield."He could just do it all," recalled Shanahan, who went on to become head coach of the Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos and now the Washington Redskins. "He could catch the ball. He didn't have to catch a lot of passes, but you could see that he could catch it. He was a great all around player."Much as he had during his his prep career, Williams made an immediate impression at Florida. He split practice time with fellow freshman Neal Anderson and sophomore Lorenzo Hampton leading up to the season opener, and performed so well that the coaches were prepared to let him start at tailback. But a hamstring injury set him back before the first game, and Anderson took over as starter."Neal came in, and from that point on he was getting 200, 300 yards a game," Williams said. "So when I came back, I didn't want to alternate Koa Misi Dolphins Jersey at tailback."And so Williams offered to switch to fullback, where only senior James Jones stood in his way of being a starter. While Anderson and Hampton carried the load as tailbacks, Williams helped their cause with punishing blocks. He also got enough opportunities running the ball to pile up 2,409 rushing yards. And Williams proved, as Shanahan had predicted while recruiting him in 1981, that he could catch passes. His 92 career receptions were a Florida school record for running backs. In one game during his senior season, Williams caught 12 passes against the University of Georgia or more than half the receptions he had during his entire high school career.

John L. Williams runs in a game for the Seahawks. Herald file photoBut without a single 1,000 yard rushing season his best year saw him go for 793 yards on the ground Williams was not regarded as a feature back in the NFL. He was initially viewed as no better than a third round pick in the 1986 draft, and some scouting services were projecting him as a fifth rounder. Not until the February scouting combine did the scouts begin envisioning a mold breaking fullback who might blossom into an NFL star because of his versatility. During that combine for pro scouts, Williams blew away the competition in several drills. Competing against fullbacks and tailbacks, Williams put on quite a show. He finished first in a quickness drill, ahead of future No. 1 overall pick Bo Jackson, and also took second behind Anderson, his former teammate, in the 40 yard dash. (Jackson did not compete in the 40 that year.)Williams was so impressive at the combine that teams began trying to move up in the first round to land him. 15 overall 12 spots ahead of his old pal Anderson. (The previous year, another Gator went No. 27 overall when Hampton was picked by the Miami Dolphins.)The first thing Williams noticed upon joining the Seahawks was that the starting tailback was a pretty good guy. And quite a player. Williams was excited to block for Curt Warner, just as he Reshad Jones Dolphins Jersey had for Anderson at Florida."We bonded right away," Williams recalled. "Curt was the man. I knew it was Reshad Jones Jersey going to be a good running game. The only thing (Warner's presence) Knowshon Moreno Dolphins Jersey could do was help the running game. I knew I was going to block but also catch a few balls. I caught quite a few passes."Williams caught 33 passes as a rookie, 38 as a second year player, and 58 in his third season. He was not only putting up impressive stats, but Williams was also becoming a big game star. His 75 yard touchdown reception on a screen pass helped beat the Chicago Bears in 1987, clinching a postseason berth. Thanks in large part to Williams' play, the Seahawks won three of their final four games and took home their first AFC West title. Seahawks

Nov. 28, 1988

As told by John L. Williams

It was Thanksgiving weekend, 1988, and we were getting pretty desperate for a win. We had just lost to Kansas City to fall to 6 6, and the playoffs were looking like a long shot. We knew that if we could win out, we had a chance. We were in the AFC West, and there were some tough teams in that division. If you didn't win 10 ballgames, you were probably not going to make the playoffs. Back then, we had the division champion come out of there, and then we had two or three other teams fighting for a wild card spot. And it was the same that year. Any game we played against the Raiders, it was something special. For some reason, that was the game for the Seahawks to play. Our fans always looked forward to that game. And of course, Chuck Knox was one of those guys who really wanted to beat those guys. What Coach Knox would always say is that it's the only game on TV that night, so you've got everybody in America watching. So whatever you do, you go out there and do your best because everyone in America's watching. Usually, on Sundays, there are other games being played. But on Monday night, we were the only game on. He always emphasized for us to fare well on national television.

John L. Williams plays in a game for the Seahawks. Herald file photoWe didn't have very many Monday night games at home, but we always had one against the Raiders. So you knew it was going to be a big game. There was so much excitement because the game started in the evening. You had to prepare for the traffic and all that. So Chuck Knox had everything planned out for us. Every game was that way with Ground Chuck. For some reason, that game the offensive line was blocking particularly well. It didn't matter who touched the ball. They were blocking so well that it didn't matter whether me or Curt got ball. Curt was running up and down the field. It was just one of those games where he was on a roll and they couldn't stop him. He had 61 yards by halftime, and we were up 21 20. That day, we didn't need to pass at all. And Curt got tired. But we ran the ball at will, and of course we had to get Steve Largent a pass in there. We were on a roll. We beat the Raiders, and we knew then that we had a chance in our next three ballgames to win. We knew we had a chance for the playoffs. A

s it turned out, the Seahawks did make the playoffs that year, winning the AFC West despite a 9 7 record. Whereas the Raiders held Warner to just 21 rushing yards on 10 carries, Williams broke their backs again by accounting for 239 total yards of offense, including 180 in receptions. According to Williams, several Bengals defenders told him: "John, we're going to let you catch your passes. But the rest of the team is going to have to beat us."Williams caught his passes an NFL playoff record of 11 in that game but his teammates couldn't hold up their end of the deal. Cincinnati ended up winning 21 13 in what would be Williams' final playoff game as a Seattle Seahawk.

John L. Williams takes a pass for a gain of 16 yards. Herald file photoHe ended up going to back to back Pro Bowls in 1990 and 1991, and it was during the week of that annual all star game that Williams had a pivotal conversation with two other dual threats. Williams got together with Buffalo's Thurman Thomas and San Francisco's Roger Craig and discussed the importance of revolutionizing the running back position. Warner and Largent retired, Knox was fired, and several other key components left town. So by the time Williams became a free agent in 1993 he was ready to move on himself. The Steelers went 12 4 in 1994, falling just short of the Super Bowl when the San Diego Chargers shocked them at home in the AFC Championship game."It was supposed to Authentic Knowshon Moreno Jersey be minus 20 degrees in Pittsburgh," Williams recalled. "But the day that we played San Diego, it was 67 degrees. "We were so good that year that we had started to make reservations for the Super Bowl down in Miami. But that Sunday came, it was 67 degrees in Pittsburgh, and they ended up beating us wow."The next year Williams' final season in the NFL he made it to the pinnacle of his sport. Not until years later would people really appreciate what Williams, Thomas and Craig had done for the position. Simpson, Walter Payton and Eric Dickerson, the new NFL started looking for more dual threats. I probably wouldn't even be playing now."

John L. Williams plays in a game for the Seattle Seahawks. Herald file photoWhile he finished his career in Pittsburgh, Williams never forgot where he got his NFL start."Seattle gave me an opportunity," he said. "They gave me a chance."Williams eventually moved back to his home state of Florida, opening a night club called John L's Club Remy. He owned the club for six years before deciding to sell. "Anytime you've got liquor," he recalled, "you've got the fighting and all the bad things that go with it. It was fun, though."In 2005, he joined former UF teammate Kerwin Bell as an assistant coach at Ocala Trinity Catholic High School. He kept his job in 2006, when another former Gator, Ricky Nattiel, took over as head coach. Williams was enjoying his tenure as running backs coach, but he admitted that it was sometimes tougher than playing. For someone as talented as Williams, teaching a running back to catch passes isn't as easy as just going out and catching the passes yourself."The receiving part is more natural," he said. "When somebody runs a pattern, and you throw it, you can tell if he's a pass catcher."Williams, who was a true pioneer in terms of redefining the fullback position, proved for a long time that he was a natural pass catcher."He was definitely an inspiration to me," said future Seahawks fullback Mack Strong. " He was a guy who was very versatile. He could run, he could block, he could catch. He did some great things to help him have a very successful career. "When you think about great backs who were receivers, you think about him, you think about Roger Craig, you think about Koa Misi Jersey Larry Centers. Those are some of the guys who stood out to me that you could count on at any time."Next week in Chapter 15 of "The Game of My Life," original Seahawks star Jim Zorn remembers winning a game with a bit of trickery.

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