Kick Returner
1989
In the 1989 season, the Philadelphia Eagles were notorious for their defense that consisted of such stars as: Eric Allen, Reggie White, Clyde Simmons, Seth Joyner, and Jerome Brown. Their offense had some solid players on it as well including Randall Cunningham, Keith Jackson, Cris Carter, and Keith Byars. All in all, this team was pretty solid all the way around except for one flaw: kick returns. Buddy Ryan's Eagles had issues in 1988 with kick returns and thus decided that it would be worth a roster spot to find someone who could fill that job and fill it quite well. Luckily, DE Reggie White had an ace up his sleave.
After he had graduated from University of Tennessee, Reggie White played a season with the Memphis Showboats in the now extinct United States Football League (USFL). One of Reggie's teammates on the Showboats was an explosive young wide receiver from East Carolina University who specialized in returning punts and kicks. The man's name was Henry Williams, but was given the nickname of Gizmo from Reggie due to his small size and according to White, his resemblance to a certain movie character. At 5ft 6inches and 185 pounds, Gizmo was by far the shortest man on the Memphis Showboats but his skill at returning kicks made him an attractive and exciting player.
At the end of the 1984-1985 season, the Showboats released Williams and White was soon drafted by the Eagles. Unable to catch on anywhere in the NFL, Williams was signed by the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League (CFL). With the exception of his one year with the Eagles, Gizmo would spend every year of his career with the Eskimos from 1986-2000. During his career with the Eskimos, the amount of records set by Gizmo is jaw-dropping. Gizmo set over 20 CFL records including: all time leader in both punt and kick return yardage, and most kick returns for TDs (31, 26 on punts, 2 on kickoffs, and 3 on missed FGs). Gizmo particuarlly made a name for himself in the 1987 Canadian League Grey Cup where he returned a missed FG for 115 yards.
Unfortunately, Gizmo would not have the same success when he was signed by the Eagles, in fact it is nearly impossible to find any information in regards to Gizmo's short stint in the NFL. Gizmo only lasted half a season before being cut by Buddy Ryan and the next year returned to the Eskimos where he continued his incredible play and setting CFL records before announcing his retirement in 2000. Buddy Ryan's Eagles would finish the season 10-6, eventually losing the NFC Wild Card game 21-7 to the Los Angeles Rams.
While dominant on the football field, the life of Gizmo Williams is one of tragedy. Williams comes from a family that has had a history of Multiple Sclerosis, a disease that attacks the central nervous system. Many members of Williams' family would not live past the age of 35 as a result of MS, but his family would face additional tragedy. Gizmo's mother would die from MS on Christmas of 1969 and one year later to the day, his father would die in a fire. From then on, Williams lost seven of his ten brothers and sisters to MS.
Williams now makes a career traveling around North America as a motivational speaker where he speaks about how his faith in God has helped him through the tough times in his life and how he used football as an escape instead of resorting to drugs or alcohol. Despite his short career in the NFL with the Eagles, Williams remains a hero throughout Canada. Several fan pages exist to honor Gizmo and many of his records still stand to this day. In 2002, Williams's #2 was retired by the Edmonton Eskimos the same year he was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. To this day, Gizmo helps raise awareness and money for Multiple Sclerosis and although he remains obscure in the minds of NFL fans, he serves as an active member of the community and a great humanitarian.
1002 punts returned for 11,134 yards and 26TDs
333 kickoffs returned for 7,291 yards and 2 TDs
58 missed FGs returned for 1,612 yards and 3 TDs
23,787 all purpose yards (2nd all time)
199 career passes for 3,644 yards and 21 TDs
2 Grey Cup Champion teams (1987, 1993)
5 Time league All-Star
Hall of Obscurity