Former NFL wide receiver Mike Williams died Tuesday morning in Tampa, Fla., from injuries sustained in a construction accident, NFL Network reported. He was 36.
His agent, Hadley Engelhard of EnterSports Management, confirmed his death to the network.
“He will be missed. He fought hard his whole life. Prayers to his family,” Engelhard said.
Earlier media reports last week said Williams had died, but they were erroneous. Instead, he was on life support and in the intensive-care unit.
Williams was taken off life support on Thursday and had been breathing on his own, per the Tampa Bay Times. He was partially paralyzed in the accident in Hillsborough County, Fla.
Williams was a Buffalo native who played nearby at Syracuse University.
He burst onto the scene in 2010 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, catching 65 passes for 964 yards and 11 touchdowns. His touchdown-reception total set the single-season club mark at the time for any player, and he wound up second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting.
Williams finished his career with 223 catches for 3,089 yards and 26 touchdowns in 63 games (52 starts) across four years with Tampa Bay and one with the Buffalo Bills.
–Field Level Media