With the status of their two top 2023 receivers – Lucky Jackson and Chris Blair – uncertain for next year, the D.C. Defenders have been hard at work this offseason reloading their receiving corps. They have already secured rights to former North Carolina St. WR Kelvin Harmon and rookie WR Ty Scott, both of whom have signed Letters of Intent. Additionally, they have brought back receivers Josh Hammond and Brandon Smith, who had stints with NFL teams over the summer.
Today, the Defenders made another move to bolster their pass-catching group for 2024, claiming the rights to former Miami Dolphins WR Preston Williams, per the wire.
The future looked bright for Williams in the NFL before a torn ACL put an abrupt halt to his rookie season in 2019 after he recorded 32 catches for 428 yards and three touchdowns through eight games – seven of which he started for the Dolphins. Unfortunately, Williams’ production just wasn’t the same upon returning from injury in the following years, and Miami would release him in 2021.
Prior to the NFL, Williams played his college ball at two different schools: Tennessee from 2015 to 2016 and then Colorado State, where he transferred to for the final two years of his college career. After sitting out due to NCAA eligibility rules in 2017, Williams earned first-team All-Mountain West honors for his performance during his junior season, which saw him post 96 receptions for 1,345 yards and 14 touchdowns. Soon after, Williams decided to forgo his final year of eligibility and entered the 2019 NFL Draft with expectations of going in the middle rounds. However, disappointing testing numbers at his pro day and underlying character issues, among other factors, led him to go undrafted.
As he was able to land on his feet with the Dolphins as an undrafted free agent and work his way onto their initial 53-man roster, perhaps he’ll use that same perseverance and grit to work his way into the Defenders’ starting lineup and to reboot his professional football career, which has been on hiatus since 2021.
Earlier today, former East Carolina WR C.J. Johnson also signed a Letter of Intent with the Defenders, per the wire.
Johnson broke the East Carolina single-game receiving yards record against Cincinnati in 2019 with 283 yards on 12 grabs. He also tied both the ECU and AAC single-game records with four receiving touchdowns against South Florida in 2022. That same season, he earned second-team all-AAC honors, as he hauled in 67 receptions for 1,016 yards and ten touchdowns.
At 6-5 224 lbs, Johnson has the potential to be a problem for opposing cornerbacks in the XFL as a physical deep threat.
