Former 49ers cornerback Jimmy Williams has died, the team announced Friday. Williams was 43.
“The 49ers mourn the passing of alumni Jimmy Williams,” the team wrote on social media. “Our organization sends its condolences to his wife, Chandra, and the entire Williams family.”
Williams went to Vanderbilt as a running back before switching to cornerback. The Bills selected him in the sixth round of the 2001 draft, but he never played in Buffalo.
He ended up in San Francisco, where he played four seasons.
Williams went on to play two years with the Seahawks and was a team captain during their Super Bowl XL campaign in 2005, which ended in a loss to the Steelers.
He appeared in 80 games during a six-year NFL career, seven as a starter, and totaled 151 tackles, three interceptions, one sack and 13 pass breakups.
In 2002, the core special teams player led the NFL with an average of 16.8 yards per punt return. Williams had one career return for a touchdown.
He retired after the 2006 season and returned to his hometown of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he became involved in his high school alma mater’s football program in 2011.
Williams had served as defensive coordinator and assistant athletic director at Episcopal School of Baton Rouge, where he was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2006.