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DeAngelo Williams’ pro wrestling debut didn’t end as hoped (Video)

By Cody Williams

PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 18: DeAngelo Williams #34 of the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrates his touchdown reception in the fourth quarter during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on September 18, 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 18: DeAngelo Williams #34 of the Pittsburgh Steelers celebrates his touchdown reception in the fourth quarter during the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Heinz Field on September 18, 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images) /
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Former Pittsburgh Steelers and Carolina Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams made his pro wrestling debut at Impact Wrestling’s Slammiversary XV.

DeAngelo Williams was the starting running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers at the start of the 2016 NFL season. What’s more, he finished the year as the featured back in the AFC Championship Game after Le’Veon Bell injured his groin early. However, the former Carolina Panthers runner isn’t signed to an NFL team for 2017. And in the interim, he’s taking up pro wrestling.

Williams made his debut on Sunday, July 2 with Impact Wrestling at their Slammiversary XV pay-per-view show. The running back teamed with Moose (real name Quinn Ojinnaka), a former NFL offensive lineman, to face the team of Eli Drake and Chris Adonis.

Given his inexperience in a pro wrestling ring, Williams didn’t do much during most of the match. He put on headlocks and looked the part of a wrestler. After all, he’s still an elite athlete and fits the bill physically for pro wrestling. However, when he was asked to ramp up his wrestling, things didn’t go as planned.

The finish of the match saw Adonis laid out on a table in the middle of the ring. Williams then climbed to the top rope to go for a frog splash (a dive perpendicularly onto an opponent with a tuck in mid-air) on Adonis and put him through the table.

Instead of that happening, however, Williams didn’t land the move entirely cleanly. Thus, the table didn’t break and the former NFL running back was sent flying forward over the table, coming dangerously close to landing directly on his head:

While that tweet may say stick to football, that’s not entirely fair to Williams. Was the botched finish to his first match unsightly? Absolutely. However, what do you expect from a football player with minimal wrestling training?

The point is that Williams probably should’ve kept it a bit more low-risk at this point. That being said, it was clear throughout the match that he does have some great natural instincts as a pro wrestler. If the 34-year old is done in the NFL, maybe pro wrestling is the next stop for him. With more proper training, there’s potential for him to be quite good in such a venture.

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Until he get’s that training, though, he should maybe dial back the big spots like trying to splash guys through tables. No one wants to see a repeat of what they did in his debut.

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