Arizona Cardinals CB Garrett Williams’ 1st priority is to get healthy

Arizona Cardinals rookie cornerback Garrett Williams is working to be healthy after a knee injury ended his college career in October.

In hopes of becoming a high-level player in his first season with Arizona, Williams told Arizona Sports’ Wolf & Luke on Tuesday that “my first priority is to become healthy, because if you are not available it doesn’t help anybody or myself.”

Williams was drafted by the Cardinals with the ninth pick in the third round. He played for Syracuse, earning Freshman All-American status and leaving college as a three-time All-ACC defensive back. Williams was team captain as a redshirt sophomore and started in seven games but ended up tearing his ACL against Notre Dame.

Williams discussed his love for making game-changing plays and overcoming the initial struggles of being a new player for the Cardinals.

“I like making those plays that bring the crowd to their feet, feeling that shift in energy and momentum for your team,” Williams said. “I realized I can make those types of plays not by just picking the ball up but by having big hits and making those types of plays in the run game, too.”

Since joining the Cardinals, Williams discussed the biggest adjustment to the Arizona heat.

“The first week was hard, the heat was beating me down but I have started getting adjusted to it more, understanding I have to adjust my hydration,” he said.

Williams said he is an extremely coachable player, constantly reaching out to other players and trying to piece together how they make standout plays. He continues to study the game.

With the current starting cornerbacks Marco Wilson and Antonio Hamilton, Williams will need to get healthy in order to be a possible third option.