Roy Williams
Position: Wide Receiver
Size: 6'3, 215
Age: 29, 12/20/81
College: Texas
Drafted: Round 1, Pick #7 - 2004
Experience: 7 Seasons
Salary History and Contract Status - According to Rotoworld: 10/19/2008: Signed a six-year, $54 million contract. The deal contains $26.6085 million guaranteed, including a $10 million option bonus in the second year and $2 million of Williams' 2010 base salary. 2010: $3,452,629 (+ $9.5 million guaranteed option bonus), 2011: $5,109,971, 2012: $6.802 million, 2013: $8.498 million (Voidable Years), 2014: $9 million, 2015: Free Agent
2004 Draft Profile From Ourlads.com: 3rd Rated WR - Roy Williams - Texas - 6'2 1/2 - 210 - 4.50 - Four-year starter. Very productive. Was slowed some during his career by nagging injuries yet tied an NCAA record with at least one catch in 47 consecutive games. Smooth athlete. Tall and sturdy with long arms. Quick in his release with the agility to escape press coverage. Fluid with his movements. Does a good job of driving defenders off and coming back for the ball. Sudden in his stops and starts. Runs with good control - stays low and comes out of his cuts with a burst. Has deep speed. Willing over the middle target with solid hands. Adept at getting into position to catch the ball and immediately becoming a runner. Dangers with the ball in his hands. Shifty. Has quick change of direction in traffic. Runs with high knee action. Can hurdle defenders. Strong runner- looks to stiff-arm tacklers. Tends to wave the ball as he runs - needs to do a better job of ball security in traffic. Good leaper with the ability to make the tough high grab. Needs to play with more consistent intensity. Flashes nastiness and the ability to dominate smaller defenders as a blocker but doesn't always attack downfield with vigor. Very talented - has the potential to be a star at the next level.
Pre-2010: There is no more controversial name in the last decade of Cowboys football than the name, "Roy Williams". The odd thing is that two different - but equally laced with polarizing opinions - players on two different sides of the football played for the Cowboys during these last several years. One was an extremely well compensated free safety drafted in the Top 10 and one was an extremely well compensated wide receiver drafted in the top 10. Both made their impressions on the Cowboys front office while playing in the Big 12 South. And their careers intersected for only 1 game, when in Week 7 of 2008 in St Louis, Roy Williams-WR played his first game after his trade from Detroit, and Roy Williams-S played his last game when he broke his forearm in the 2nd Quarter. Throughout Roy's career in both Detroit and Dallas, he has always remained a bit of a tease. Capable of the most extraordinary catch for the highlight film, but never a consistent producer who could be counted on. He was brought to Dallas with dreams that he would be the receiver to first compliment and then succeed Terrell Owens as the #1 Receiver. The reality is that never came close to happening. In 2008, he was unable to acclimate and provide any sort of production. In 2009, with the job completely his to take as Owens had been dismissed, Roy turned in a performance that was amongst the very worst in the sport (100th of 107 qualifying WRs) - catching only 38 of the 86 balls thrown his direction for a horrendous 44% catch percentage. For reasons beyond anyone's best explanation, Tony Romo had found a rhythm with Jason Witten, Miles Austin, and Patrick Crayton. But with Roy Williams, they were never close to the same page.
2010: Largely brought back in 2010 because of his contract that made it about the same price to keep him or cut him, Roy was better this season. His catch rate was up to 62.7% (43rd) and he did contribute a fair number of occasions with 5 Touchdowns including a big afternoon in Week 3 against Houston. However, in that Roy Williams way, bad things always seem to trip up this player who has plenty of skills. Fumbles really sabotaged his efforts against Chicago and then the game-changing fumble versus the Saints with the whole nation watching on Thanksgiving Day. Who knows how different the season would have been if he really had caught the game-winning TD pass in the Washington game opening night, but Alex Barron's holding penalty nullified that. Roy has a knack for walking under a rain cloud it seems and at times you think his luck is about to change - only to see something trip him up. Many experts critique his route running as sloppy, but he also is singled out for being an exceptional downfield blocker.
2011 Analysis: You always wonder how you would feel about a player if he was not tied to his contract. Expectation levels shot up for Tony Romo and Miles Austin when they went from being one of the cheapest contributors in the league to one of the most expensive on the roster. Perhaps one of the worst moves Jerry Jones has ever made was his decision to not only trade premium draft picks to the Lions, but then to sign Roy Williams to a 6-year, $54 million deal before he ever stepped on the field for the Cowboys. It certainly secured Williams' financial future, but it also designated him for superstardom. That has never come close to occurring, and now with Miles Austin and Dez Bryant both younger and far more productive than Williams, his usefulness seems minimal. It is a very harsh business in which nice guys may get a second chance, but at some point they have to emerge in the NFL as what they are paid to be. If not, they are released at the first opportunity. Pending the new CBA, it would certainly seem that Roy's 3-year run with the Cowboys will not see a 4th. Paying #1 WR money to a #3 WR seems financially foolish if it can be avoided. We shall see.
Previous Profiles:
Doug Free
Marc Colombo
Sam Young
Alex Barron
DeMarcus Ware
Anthony Spencer
Victor Butler
Brandon Williams
Jason Witten
Martellus Bennett
John Phillips
Bradie James
Keith Brooking
Sean Lee
Leon Williams
Sam Hurd
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