The Jets already have a pair of brothers on the same roster in Quincy and Quinnen Williams.
One more could potentially join them after trying out for the team last weekend.
Giovanni Williams, a linebacker from Miles College, a Division II HBCU in Alabama, was one of the non-roster players hoping to land a contract with the Jets during rookie minicamp. Before transferring to Miles College in 2023, he spent two seasons (2021-22) at Texas A&M-Kingsville.
Williams describes his playing style as a mix of both of his brothers.
“I got Quincy’s speed, but I got Quinnen’s build,” Williams said. “So, it’s like I’m in the middle of both. So everybody compares me to the hybrid of them both.”
Williams is listed at 5-10, 222 pounds, similar to Quincy’s stature of 5-11, 230 pounds. However, Williams once exceeded Quinnen’s mass (6-3, 303 pounds).
Williams said his weight ballooned to 350 pounds in high school when he was a middle linebacker. He eventually dropped his weight to 185 pounds in three months before rebuilding his body to his current weight.
“Eating, honestly, eating,” Williams said about his weight gain. “And then I had messed up my shoulder, so that was kind of it. But eating, I love to eat. But when I was like 350, they were like, ‘You gotta look the part.’
“So I didn’t look like I was a middle linebacker, so I kind of got in my head a little bit. I won’t say depressed, but I got in my head a little bit, and I was like, ‘You gotta work now and you gotta look the part.’ I just did everything I could do and got my weight down.
Williams was excited when he learned about his tryout with the Jets. He describes the opportunity to land on the roster as bittersweet because he is trying to forge his own path and not “still live behind” his two brothers.
However, Williams was excited about the tryout. If he were to make the Jets roster, the Brothers Williams would be the first trio of brothers to play in the NFL since the 1927 Duluth Eskimos, according to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“I was like, ‘wow, my brothers,’” Williams said. “I was like, ‘it’s go time and you gotta lock in now.’ It’s like a historical moment, three brothers have never been on the same team, so I had to focus more, lock in more.”
Before he took the field for his tryout, Williams got advice from both of his brothers. Quinnen told him to be himself, while Quincy told him to control his mind and his body.
“I just think it’s outstanding that he has a Jet jersey on and both of his brothers are actually here with us,” Jets coach Aaron Glenn said about Williams. “So it’s a beautiful story. He’s working his butt off and again.”
Observations from rookie minicamp
It is difficult to take much from the Jets’ rookie minicamp, in which players performed without pads. However, a few players stood out during the two days, including a couple of undrafted free agent running backs.
Donovan Edwards and Lawrance Toafili were impressive ball catchers out of the backfield and runners between the tackles. Edwards was signed as an undrafted free agent, and Toafili was among the 12 players who tried out for the team.
During his four seasons at Michigan, Edwards rushed for 2,251 yards and 19 touchdowns. However, he never registered more than 991 rushing yards in any of his four seasons.
After rushing for 104 yards and two touchdowns in Michigan’s 2024 national championship victory against Washington, Edwards was expected to be one of the best running backs in the nation during his senior season. But he had an underwhelming 2025 season after recording 589 yards and four touchdowns in his final season in Ann Arbor.
Toafili was a rotational player for Florida State during his five seasons in Tallahassee. During that span, he rushed for 1,895 yards and 15 touchdowns.
First-round draft pick Armand Membou and second-round pick Mason Taylor also flashed. Membou demonstrated his athleticism at right tackle and excellent footwork. Like he did at LSU, Taylor showed he is a reliable pass catcher, whom Justin Fields will likely rely on during third-down situations.
Glenn happy with attendance for voluntary workouts
Following rookie minicamp, Glenn was asked how voluntary workouts were going with the veteran players. He has been satisfied with the turnout during Phases 1 and 2 of the offseason program.
“I think those guys have done a hell of a job of understanding what we’re trying to create,” Glenn said. “I think we had over 90% in Phase 1 and going into Phase 2, we’re up to about 94%. I give those guys a lot of credit of understanding like what we’re trying to create and just buying in to what we’re selling.
“When you get a new regime that’s the one thing you want to make sure to just get the trust of the players. I do believe with every part of me that these guys know exactly what we’re trying to do, and the thing is my verbiage has been very simple from the beginning, and as it goes to Phase 3, the verbiage is going to change because we’re doing things different because now we’re really on the field, there’s some competitive moments out there now and then exactly how I see the identity of the team going forward because we’re on the grass at that point.”
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