‘I Was Really About To Just Hang Up The Cleats’: Javonte Williams Nearly Retired Before Joining Dallas Cowboys

FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys running back Javonte Williams said he seriously considered retiring from the NFL after his four seasons with the Denver Broncos came to an end, during an appearance this week on the Downs 2 Business podcast.

Brothers Caleb Downs and Josh Downs host the show. Caleb Downs is a rookie safety in Dallas after the Cowboys traded up to select him No. 11 overall in April’s draft. Josh Downs plays wide receiver for the Indianapolis Colts and was a freshman at North Carolina in 2020, Williams’ final college season.

Williams credited his faith and his family for getting him to give football another try. Dallas signed him in March 2025 to a one-year, $3 million deal that could reach $3.5 million with incentives.

“I was really about to just hang up the cleats,” Williams said.

Denver drafted Williams in the second round in 2021, No. 35 overall, and he ran for 903 yards as a rookie. Four games into his second season, he tore the ACL and LCL in his knee and damaged the posterolateral corner. Over four seasons with the Broncos, Williams totaled 2,394 rushing yards and 11 rushing touchdowns.

Javonte Williams Contrasts Denver Exit With Cowboys Arrival

In 2024, his final season in Denver, Williams ran for 513 yards on 139 carries. The Broncos let him reach free agency the following March. On the podcast, he kept his comments about his old team respectful while separating how he felt on his way out of Denver from how he felt once he got to Dallas.

“No disrespect to nobody in Denver or nothing like that,” Williams explained. “I respect everybody over there, I respect what they got going on … Just coming to Dallas it felt like it’s a new awakening. I felt like a rebirth.”

“Just leaving there and coming here, the coaches believing in me, everybody just like lifting me up,” Williams continued. “It kind of felt like UNC all over again. Me just going out there just playing, having fun.”

Real estate was the plan Williams had lined up if he walked away. He had already bought a house before the Cowboys came with their offer.

“I just fell in love with the game again,” Williams said. “I really had lost love for the game … I had already bought a crib … I’m like I might just start my real estate or something.”

Williams Coming Off Career-High 155 Yards Against Philadelphia Eagles

During his first season in Dallas, Williams carried 252 times for 1,201 yards and 11 touchdowns, setting career highs in all three, and started 16 games. He also caught 35 passes for 137 yards and 2 touchdowns for 1,338 scrimmage yards. No Cowboys player had run for more yards in a season since Ezekiel Elliott posted 1,357 in 2019.

The Cowboys brought Williams back in February on a three-year, $24 million contract that includes $16 million guaranteed and a $6 million signing bonus.

Through seven games this season, Williams has 472 rushing yards and 8 rushing touchdowns. He has added 19 catches for 103 yards and 1 receiving touchdown.

Before Monday, Williams was averaging 3.7 yards per carry. Against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field, he carried a season-high 25 times for a career-high 155 yards and a touchdown in Dallas’ 38-21 win. It was his first 100-yard game of the season, and his fourth-quarter touchdown run put the game away.

No Cowboys running back had gained more rushing yards in a game since Elliott ran for 159 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Dec. 18, 2016.

Dallas finished with 204 rushing yards on 38 carries. Dak Prescott completed 15-of-27 passes for 212 yards and 3 touchdowns without an interception, and CeeDee Lamb caught 2 of the touchdown passes.

The win moved the Cowboys to 3-4. Dallas hosts the Arizona Cardinals at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, with kickoff set for noon CT on FOX.