They join an elite group of brothers who made it pro!
New York Jets defensive brothers Quincy and Quinnen Williams are making history in the league, Sports Casting reports. The Williams brothers grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, attending Wenonah High School before parting ways to pursue a career in the NFL.
Quincy left to play linebacker at Murray State in Kentucky, redshirting his first year before showing out the next three seasons. He gained more tackles with every passing game and at 5-foot-11, 225 pounds, he was drafted to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the third round in 2019.
His brother Quinnen was the No. 1 ranked defensive lineman as a four-star recruit at 6-foot-3, 303 pounds coming out of high school. He stayed home, attending the University of Alabama, also redshirting his first year and serving as a rotational player in his first season. In his second season, he emerged as a star, winning the Outland Trophy as the best interior lineman in the country and becoming first-team All-America and All-SEC. He was drafted in the 2019 NFL Draft by The New York Jets as No. 3 overall.
It’s a rarity that anyone makes it into the NFL, much less two brothers. But the Williams brothers defied the odds, and now both are in their third year with the league. The two recently reunited on the same team for the first time since high school. After two seasons in Jacksonville, Quincy was let go by the Jaguars, and the Jets hurried at the opportunity to sign their star lineman’s older brother, just in time for the 2021 season.
During the Jets 24-27 overtime victory at home against the Tennessee Titans, the brothers both recorded sacks in the same game for the same team. This is the first time that it’s ever happened in the NFL. For Quincy, it was his first NFL career sack.
“It’s dope, just knowing that he got his first sack. I try to get sacks every week. That’s my job,” Quinnen said.
It was also an extraordinary moment for the Williams family, watching the brothers play at home. Their grandmother was in the stands with their father, Quincy Williams, Sr., and their brother Giovanni and sister Ciele. Their mother, Marquischa Henderson Williams, passed away in 2010 after a battle with breast cancer. Quincy and Quinnen playing on the same team and making history at the start of the NFL’s Crucial Catch-Intercept Cancer campaign made it that much more significant.
The two now join an illustrious group of NFL brothers, including running backs Thomas and Julius Jones, Tiki and Ronde Barber, and Sterling and Shannon Sharpe.
Congratulations, Quincy and Quinnen! Because of you, we can!
Photo Courtesy of New York Jets/Twitter