Baltimore Ravens Rookie Profile: Brandon Williams

Biography:

Out of all of the Baltimore Ravens draft picks, Brandon Williams is perhaps one of their most intriguing prospects. An undersized and under-recruited defensive tackle out of high school, Williams ended up attending Missouri Southern State where he simply dominated his level competition during his five-year career; earning Division II All-American honors an outstanding three times while setting the school's record for sacks (27) and tackles for loss (52.5) en route to becoming the 94th overall pick of the 2013 NFL Draft.

Collegiate Stats:

(Editor's Note: It's actually pretty amazing how little organized statistical information you can find on Williams; ESPN has his name recorded in it's database but has no stats to match his name, and Sports Reference doesn't even have the guy listed as existing! I ended up finally finding his stats listed under his profile on Missouri Southern State University's website):

2012: A preseason All-American by multiple media outlets, Williams has been named to five different All-American teams (Coaches, AP, Beyond Sports Network and Daktronics) ... He was the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year, as well as being named both Regional (Daktronics) and National (BSN & D2football.com) Defensive Players of the Year... Williams became the all-time sacks leader for the school and finished with 27 in his career at Missouri Southern. He had at least a half sack in all but three games this year and had a tackle for a loss in all but one game. He finished the season second on the team with 68 tackles, 31 solo, including 16.5 for a loss of 58 yards. He had 8.5 sacks for a loss of 39 yards, two pass break ups, eight quarterback hurries, five forced fumbles and one safety on the season and finished third in the MIAA in sacks and tackles for a loss, while ranking second in forced fumbles.

2011: A unanimous All-MIAA selection, Williams was also named All-Region and All-American for a second straight season. Finished the season third in the MIAA in sacks with 8, while ranking second in the conference in tackles for loss with 16 for a loss of 78 yards. Appeared in 9 of the Lions 10 games finishing the season with 35 tackles (19 solo) with 5 pass break ups and 3 quarterback hurries. Had a season-high 4.5 tackles for a loss of 25 yards vs Washburn.

2010: The leader of the Southern defense returns in 2011 and has already been named a preseason All-American by some outlets. In 2010, Williams led the Lions with nine sacks and 17 tackles for loss and was named to three-different All-American teams.

2009: Sat out 2009 with a medical redshirt

2008: Showed great potential by competing in every game as a true freshman ... ranked eighth on the team with 38 tackles ... saved his best for last by producing a season-high nine tackles two straight weeks at Truman and against No. 3-ranked Northwest Missouri State ... also recorded three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.

Honors and Achievements:

-Three-time Division II All-American from 2010 to 2012

-Two-time All-Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association and All-Region selection in both 2011 and 2012

-MIAA Defensive Player of The Year in 2012

-Missouri Southern State's all-time sack leader (27) and tackles for loss leader (52.5)

Conclusion:

Just like the Raven's first two picks, Williams is a bit short (standing six-foot-one) but he makes up for it with his tremendous explosiveness and strength (recording 38 reps on the bench press during the 2013 NFL Scouting Combine). During this year's senior bowl you could consistently see him blow past blockers with ease and collapse the pocket. Williams seems to be exactly what the Ravens hoped Terrence Cody would be when they drafted him back in 2010; a big body who can apply pressure and draw double-teams away from their other pass-rushers. If Williams can perform even slightly like he did at Missouri Southern State and the Senior Bowl then this pick will be a huge steal for the Ravens.

For a more in-depth scouting report by fellow SBNation blog, Stampede Blue, click here

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