Mike Williams, a former wide receiver for Syracuse and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, died from a rare bacterial sepsis associated with poor dental health, according to a report from the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Office. The sepsis developed after Williams was hurt in August at a construction site related to his job.
Williams had a work accident on August 21 as he was working on a construction site, as per the medical examiner’s findings, when “heavy supplies landed on his head.” Williams was brought to the hospital and placed in the intensive care unit (ICU), where, on September 12, his condition deteriorated and he was removed from life support. When Williams passed away, he was thirty-six years old.
The specifics of the medical report “Bacillary sepsis with cerebral abscesses and necrotizing lobar pneumonia due to multiple dental caries and retained dental roots” was Williams’ final cause of death, according to the summary.
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Williams’ time with the Buccaneers
Mike Williams was picked in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Williams started all 16 games for the Bucs at wide receiver his rookie year and caught 65 passes for 964 yards and 11 touchdowns.
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Williams spent four seasons with the Buccaneers before being traded to the Buffalo Bills in 2014. Williams was a native of Buffalo, New York, and spent one season with the Bills.
Williams then spent a short time with the Chiefs but retired in 2016.