Tim Williams learned the hard way that mistakes can be costly.
While playing football for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide in 2016, Williams was pulled over by campus police and subsequently arrested and charged with a misdemeanour for carrying a pistol without a permit. He notified officers he had a gun in the car but didn’t realize he didn’t have the proper permits to carry a firearm.
“Back in Alabama, the laws were different,” Williams said. “In Louisiana, when you purchase a firearm, you don’t need a conceal permit paper to put in your car; your car is an extension of your home in Louisiana.
“It was on me, I made a mistake. That was on me that I didn’t know the rules and regulations.”
And Williams, who was a top NFL prospect heading into the NFL Draft at the time, estimated the error cost him millions of dollars that come with being a high pick.
“The (San Francisco) 49ers told me straight up I was supposed to go the second pick,” Williams said.
“I lost $20 million, easily.”
Instead, the Baltimore Ravens selected Williams in the third round, 78th overall. He went on to play 20 regular-season games over three NFL seasons with the Ravens, Green Bay Packers and Seattle Seahawks, but his career south of the border never really panned out after Alabama. So now, the 27-year-old is trying out for the Saskatchewan Roughriders, using his past as motivation.
“That whole situation really made me change how I view my life,” Williams said. “I’ve got three kids and a wife now so the mentality that I had back then as a 20, 21-year-old coming into the NFL is just totally different.
“I think about that every day. It’s what drives me. It’s what gives me inspiration to keep going.”