Trayveon Williams, one of four running backs on Bengals' roster, seeks 3rd-down role
Cincinnati Enquirer One question many Cincinnati Bengals fans had before the team announced its 53-man roster Tuesday was whether Trayveon Williams would be among the team's running backs despite missing most of training camp after suffering an ankle injury Aug. 1. The former sixth-round pick, who turns 26 in October, is one of four Bengals running backs on the roster, along with Joe Mixon, Chase Brown and Chris Evans.
Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said he expects Williams to return to practice this week, and Williams, who Cincinnati re-signed to a one-year contract in March, could be a candidate for third-down carries as soon as Week 1 against the Cleveland Browns. Williams suggested in April that he's ready to assume the role Samaje Perine had before leaving for the Denver Broncos in free agency. Here are five things to know about Williams, who's entering his fifth season with the Bengals: Williams was the Bengals' sixth-round pick (182nd overall) in 2019.
The Bengals' 2019 draft class included Jonah Williams, Drew Sample, Germaine Pratt, Ryan Finley, Renell Wren, Michael Jordan, Trayveon Williams, Deshaun Davis, Rodney Anderson and Jordan Brown. Jonah Williams, Sample, Pratt and Trayveon Williams remain with the Bengals. Wren is on the Pittsburgh Steelers' roster.
Jordan was released Tuesday by the Carolina Panthers. Another notable sixth-round pick in 2019? Indianapolis Colts quarterback Gardner Minshew II was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars four picks before Trayveon went to the Bengals. At 5-foot-8, Williams, born and raised in Houston, Texas, is the shortest player on the Bengals' roster.
Orlando Brown Jr. , listed as 6-foot-8, is a foot taller than Williams. Williams took over as the Bengals' primary kick returner in Week 10 of the 2022 season.
Evans returned kicks for Cincinnati until he suffered a right knee (PCL) injury against Carolina. When Williams replaced Evans, Williams had never returned a kickoff or punt in the NFL. Williams had five kick returns for 82 yards (16.
4 average) as a freshman at Texas A&M, and six returns for 183 yards (30. 5 average) as a sophomore for the Aggies. Williams returned 20 kickoffs for 449 yards (22.
5 average) in 10 games, including the playoffs. He had been inactive for eight of Cincinnati's first nine games of the season. In four NFL seasons, Williams has 47 carries for 238 yards, along with eight catches for 64 yards.
He hasn't scored a touchdown as a professional. Williams led the Southeastern Conference in rushing yards (1,760) and rushing touchdowns (18) in 13 games as a junior in 2018. Williams broke Darren Lewis' single-season rushing record at Texas A&M.
He added 278 receiving yards on 27 catches with a receiving touchdown, boosting his yardage total to 2,038 and his TD total to 19. He was first-team all-SEC and second-team All-American. Williams' rushing average as a freshman, 6.
8 yards per carry, was the best of his three seasons in College Station. Williams had 1,057 yards on the ground in 2016, his first season at A&M. Williams and Joe Burrow starred in a legendary LSU-Texas A&M game in 2018, won 74-72 by the Aggies.
Burrow's LSU team was ranked No. 8 when it met Williams and No. 25 Texas A&M at Kyle Field on Nov.
24. After seven overtimes, the Aggies prevailed. Burrow was 25-for-38 with 270 passing yards and three touchdowns, without an interception.
He added 100 rushing yards on 29 carries, with three TDs on the ground. Williams had 198 rushing yards on 35 carries with two TDs. Williams also impressed in his final game for the Aggies.
Williams and Texas A&M took on Finley (later drafted two rounds ahead of him by the Bengals) and North Carolina State in the Gator Bowl on Dec. 31, 2018. Williams rushed for a Gator Bowl-record 236 yards on 19 carries (12.
4 average) with three touchdowns, leading the Aggies to a 52-13 rout of the Wolfpack in Jacksonville. Four days later, Williams announced he would forgo his final year of eligibility and enter the 2019 draft. .