During his radio show Monday night, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney raved about one of his former players — who also happens to be one of Swinney’s favorite people.

Swinney spoke highly of DeShawn Williams, who played for Swinney at Clemson from 2011-14.

“Man, I am so proud of DeShawn Williams,” Swinney said. “I mean this guy is just one of my all-time favorite dudes.”

Williams, 30, is now in his first season with the Carolina Panthers after signing with the team this past offseason.

The 6-foot-1, 292-pound defensive lineman has endured a long and winding NFL journey but has established himself in the league thanks to his work ethic and perseverance, as a player who was cut by several different teams, jumped from practice squad to practice squad and even spent a year in the CFL – not to mention working for Amazon at one point.

“To see the career that he has been able to have, his persistence and never-quit attitude, and for him now to be doing what he is doing… I am just so proud of him,” Swinney said. “He was on that ’14 defense with (DJ) Reader and Grady (Jarrett) and those guys.”

Prior to joining the Panthers, Williams played the last three seasons with the Denver Broncos, starting 34 of the 46 games he appeared in. He started 15 games and had a career-best season with Denver in 2022, making 4.5 sacks along with 37 tackles, four tackles for loss and three pass deflections.

Entering the 2023 season, Williams had tallied 115 total tackles, nine tackles for loss and eight sacks in his NFL career. He has recorded six tackles, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit through two games with the Panthers so far this season.

A product of nearby Daniel High, Williams had 161 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, 24 quarterback pressures, four pass breakups, one recovered fumble and two blocked kicks over 53 games (17 starts) in his Clemson career.

Originally an undrafted free agent, Williams has spent time with the Bengals, Dolphins, Colts and Calgary Stampeders of the CFL, to go along with three stints with the Broncos and his current campaign with the Panthers.

–Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images 

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