The Falcons have agreed to a one-year contract with defensive lineman Chris Williams, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. It’s a $2MM deal.
Undrafted out of Wagner in 2020, Williams caught on with the Colts and spent his rookie season on their practice squad. The 298-pounder went on to play sparingly with Indianapolis from 2021-22, during which he appeared in 13 games and made six tackles.
After the Colts cut Williams in the spring of 2023, he had brief runs on practice squads in Kansas City and Cleveland. Although he did not play a snap for the Browns, they got some value from Williams in an August 2024 trade. The Browns sent Williams and a 2025 seventh-round pick to the Bears for a ’25 sixth-rounder. Ian Cunningham, now the Falcons’ general manager, was the Bears’ assistant GM when they acquired Williams.
During his two-year run in Chicago, Williams played in 31 games and clearly impressed Cunningham along the way. In 2024, his lone 17-game season, Williams racked up 23 tackles, seven QB hits and three sacks on 367 defensive snaps. The 27-year-old was on the field for 14 games and 219 defensive plays last season. He finished the year with 14 tackles, two QB hits and a sack.
The Falcons’ defensive line took an obvious hit when David Onyemata left for the Jets on Monday. They have since added Williams and Cameron Thomas in low-cost moves.
Nice.