In the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers selected defensive lineman Mykel Williams from the University of Georgia 11th overall.
"It's a major blessing," Williams said. "I just give all the glory to God and I'm just thankful for being in this situation, in this position. I just thank the 49ers and their ownership and general manager John Lynch for selecting me and making me the pick."
Williams was a prized pick for the 49ers, and the team's draft room rode a rollercoaster of emotions before landing him 11th overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. San Francisco tried to trade up to get him, and when that didn't work out, they were thrilled to see him still on the board at their original spot, going to show just how highly they valued his ability to make an immediate impact.
"We had a good idea he was going earlier, and you don't actually know. We thought about going up and John (Lynch) definitely attempted... But they shot him down," head coach Kyle Shanahan said. "And so, we were ready to watch him go away and we were ready to go to our second and third, but he didn't go where we thought he was going to go.
"Then we got to our pick and I was like, 'I can't believe you tried to trade there, of course he was coming (laughter).' So that's our thing about the draft, you never know. But we stuck there and waited for our guy and we got the guy we wanted."
Williams has championship DNA. Both of his parents were collegiate athletes, but it was his mom who truly stood out.
"Both my parents played sports collegiately, but my mom, I say she was the better one," Williams said. "She made Team USA's Olympic volleyball team when they went to Australia... And she was actually pregnant with me while she was over there."
Williams was inspired to play football after watching WWE superstar Edge deliver his signature "spear." He asked his dad if he could do that in football, and played on defense to make hits like the "spear" ever since.
"I wrestled in high school," Williams said. "It helped me with football, it helped me with my grip strength, my balance, and my body control to where I can take on the block and still be stout in the run game and stuff like that."
Williams brings elite athleticism and explosiveness off the edge. The 49ers coaching staff view him as a bookend to defensive lineman Nick Bosa, expecting the duo to bring major pressure to quarterbacks and elevate the entire defensive front.
"I was just talking to (defensive line coach) Kris Kocurek and he said this when we went through our draft meetings, 'I think he's the best edge setter in college football. I think he's the best edge setter in this draft class.' So, if that's the premise of one of the things that's a hallmark of what we want in an edge guy, he does it extremely well. And I think that was impressive," president of football operations and general manager John Lynch said.
Off the field, he's passionate about service, regularly participating in community events like turkey drives and youth football camps.
"Just getting into the community and helping where help is needed," Williams said. "Being a face that the kids can see and smile at, because they know I'm there to help."
