Tramon Williams may soon be set for a historic NFL feat: suiting up for playoff games with two different teams in the same season. The Packers elevated the cornerback from their practice squad Saturday.
Green Bay signed the 14th-year cornerback earlier this week, making this Williams’ third stint with his original NFL team. But he played just last week in the Ravens-Bills divisional-round game, logging 12 defensive snaps with Baltimore.
The Ravens, however, waived Williams soon after their Round 2 loss. Since no one claimed him, the 37-year-old defender would be eligible to play in Sunday’s Packers-Buccaneers game. Since Tuesday, Williams has been waived, made a Packers visit, signed with the Packers and now will rise from the practice squad to the active roster via the COVID-19 replacement route.
If Williams plays Sunday, it will be his fifth NFC championship game as a Packer. Among current Packers, only he and kicker Mason Crosby saw action in the frigid 2007 NFC title game against the Giants. Williams playing Sunday would make him the first player ever to do suit up for two different teams in the same playoffs, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter).
Williams’ status may be tied to Kevin King‘s availability. King is battling a back injury that flared up Friday, though Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com notes the young corner is feeling better after that issue (Twitter link). King fully participated in Green Bay’s Wednesday and Thursday practices but did not work out Friday.
The NFL loosening restrictions on players changing teams amid the pandemic would allow Williams to complete this postseason double dip. The league previously required players who changed teams to go through six days’ worth of coronavirus tests before practicing with their new teams. That timetable would not have allowed Williams to play in the NFC championship game. But the league since made a change to allow players who were already being regularly tested to change teams and suit up without navigating the near-weeklong waiting period.
A Packers UDFA in 2007, Williams began his career with eight Green Bay seasons. After leaving for Cleveland in free agency in 2015, he made his way back to Wisconsin in 2018. Williams spending the 2018 and ’19 seasons with the Packers certainly played a key role in his return. Overall, he has spent four seasons playing in current Packer DC and ex-Browns HC Mike Pettine‘s system since 2015.
This should be illegal