Former Philadelphia Eagles Bernard Williams did not know he was still on the roster when it was announced he was released this week.
This week, Bernard Williams was waived by the Philadelphia Eagles, a standard roster move … except there was nothing standard about it.
Williams last played in the NFL in 1994, when he was 22 years old. It was his rookie season after being drafted No. 14 overall in the first round of the 1994 NFL Draft out of the University of Georgia. He performed so well as a rookie offensive tackle that he was named to the NFL’s All-Rookie team that season after starting in every one of the Eagles’ 16 games.
After his rookie season, Williams tested positive for marijuana before the 1995 season began and was suspended. He would go on to test positive at least 15 different times and was never reinstated to play in the NFL.
His football career didn’t end there, however, as he moved to Canada to continue playing football in the Canadian Football League. He would spend time with the BC Lions in 2000 before moving back to America to participate in the XFL, with the Memphis Maniax and Detroit Fury. In 2003, Williams went back to the CFL to play for the Toronto Argonauts where his professional career ended.
“When I went to Canada, the Eagles kept my rights through all of that,” Williams said via InsideTheBirds.com. They never released my rights. But I had no idea that I was still on the roster 29 years later.”
He did win the 2004 Grey Cup with the Argonauts before eventually retiring in 2006.
Now, Williams’ rights, which Philadelphia has held since drafting him in 1994, were finally waived from the Reserve/Suspended List. He said that he is still a fan of the Eagles and roots for their Georgia players like Nakobe Dean, Jordan Davis and Nolan Smith.
