Before he joined the Dallas Cowboys last season, running back Javonte Williams gave serious thought to retiring from the NFL.

Williams entered the league as a second-round pick of the Denver Broncos in 2022, but after having success in his rookie campaign, Williams struggled with injury and ineffectiveness over his final three seasons in Denver.

He would eventually sign a prove-it deal with the Cowboys, but before that, Williams said he thought about retiring.

"I was really about to just hang up the cleats," Williams said on the Downs 2 Business podcast.

Williams admits that he fell back in love with the game upon joining the Cowboys and strongly hinted the coaches stopped believing in him in Denver.

"No disrespect to nobody in Denver or nothing like that, I respect everybody over there, I respect what they got going on," Williams added. "Just coming to Dallas it felt like it's a new awakening. I felt like a rebirth."

"Just leaving there and coming here, the coaches believing in me, everybody just like lifting me up. It kind of felt like UNC all over again. Me just going out there just playing, having fun."

"I just fell in love with the game again. I really had lost love for the game... I had already bought a crib... I'm like I might just start my real estate or something," Williams concluded.

Javonte Williams' career revival

A rebirth is a perfect way to label what Williams has done in Dallas.

There were no shortage of skeptics when the Cowboys made Williams their starting running back after his failures in Denver. However, Williams ultimately proved to be a total steal.

Williams ripped off career-highs in rushing yards with 1,201, and scrimmage yards with 1,338 while also scoring 13 total touchdowns, including 11 on the ground.

For his efforts, the Cowboys re-signed Williams to a three-year, $24 million contract this past offseason.

Williams has had a tougher time over the first seven games this season, but he has remained productive with 472 rushing yards and 103 receiving yards and nine total touchdowns, including eight rushing scores that leads the NFL.

Williams is on pace to shatter both what he posted through the air and his touchdown total from last season.

The Cowboys running back is also coming off his best game of the 2026 campaign after he exploded for 155 rushing yards in Week 7, which was also a career-best mark for him.

Dallas is hoping that is a sign of things to come because the Cowboys desperately need their rushing attack to get going to take some pressure off Dak Prescott and the Dallas air attack.

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