After joining the Cardinals earlier this offseason, Shawn Williams has already earned his walking papers. Arizona is releasing the veteran safety, reports NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero (via Twitter).
Williams inked a one-year pact with the Cardinals back in March. The move reunited the safety with Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, who was Williams’ defensive backs coach in Cincinnati for a couple of seasons. The 30-year-old sat on active/non-football injury list until early August.
Williams played sparingly his first couple of years in the league, but then blossomed into a full-time starter. From 2016-19, he started 57 of the 58 games he appeared in.
In 2018 he had an impressive five interceptions, and in 2019 he had 114 tackles. This past season he suddenly fell into the coaching staff’s doghouse, and mostly only played on special teams. He was suspended for a game back in December for stepping on an opponent.