Seahawks All-Time Lineup: Fullback John L. Williams

Filling out the all-time Seattle Seahawks lineup is an interesting task to me. Take the role of ball carrier for instance. Shaun Alexander is the team’s rushing leader for both career and single-season yards. But anyone who remembers the back-to-back Super Bowl run in the 2013 and ’14 seasons will think of Marshawn Lynch as the team’s greatest runner. Alexander has over 9,000 career yards with the team. No one else has reached 7,000.

That’s not the position that interest me the most. It’s fullback. 

Mack Strong made number three on the NFL’s list on a video called Top 5 Most Iconic Fullbacks in NFL History. That’s NFL fullbacks, not just Seattle’s. Strong blocked for Alexander. It was that tandem that led the Seahawks to their first Super Bowl appearance at the end of 2005. But there’s another fullback that deserves a look for Seattle’s all-time team. John L. Williams.

Fullbacks Used to Get a Lot of Touches

Williams was the Seahawks first-round pick in 1986, the number 15th selection. He played eight years with Seattle before closing out his career in two seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Whereas Strong was largely a lead blocker, Williams had lots of touches. Though he never rushed for more than 877 yards in a single season, coupled with his receiving yards he had four straight 1,000-yard scrimmage years beginning with 1988. In 1992 Williams had more receiving yards that rushing yards for the first time and it was a trend that he kept up for the remainder of his career.