Broncos CB Williams shot and killed

NFL.com wire reports


DENVER (Jan. 1, 2007) -- Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was shot and killed in a drive-by shooting in downtown Denver.

Team spokesman Jim Saccomano said police called him about 3 a.m. from the scene of the shooting and told him three people had been shot and that Williams had been killed.

A little after 2 a.m., a white Hummer limousine was sprayed with bullets from a vehicle that pulled up along its side, said Sonny Jackson, spokesperson for the Denver Police Department.

Three people in the limousine were hit and were taken to area hospitals, where one man was pronounced dead, Jackson said. The other man and woman who were shot were not identified.

Jackson said police were searching for the suspects and interviewing witnesses.

"We have no motive yet," Jackson said. "We're hoping to talk with witnesses to find out where they were coming from, and that might give us some clues."

Saccomano said he spoke with coach Mike Shanahan and others in the organization.

"Complete shock. We're speechless. It takes words away. A terrible tragedy," Saccomano said.

Hours before the shooting, the Broncos lost to San Francisco 26-23 in overtime, eliminating them from the playoff race.

The 24-year-old Williams finished the season with 88 tackles, 78 of them solo, and four interceptions.

On Sunday against the 49ers, he had three tackles and returned two punts for 50 yards before leaving the game with a shoulder injury late in the second half.

Williams, a second-round draft pick out of Oklahoma State in 2005, made an immediate impact on the Broncos, starting nine times in his rookie season following a stellar career at Oklahoma State, where he totaled 11 interceptions and scored three touchdowns on punt returns.

That's just so wrong...

This may be wrong, but as long as it isn't a Cowboy or a Bear, then it's just elimination of my teams' enemies!

That's horrible...And he was playing so good! he rivaled Champ Bailey in every statistic except INTs.

What a horrible tragedy.

I don't find any humor in your statement at all.

Oh, was it supposed to be humorous?

If it wasn't meant to be humorous, then you should be completely ashamed of yourself...or are you just a crass, insensitive, jerk?

Either that, or your a self-centered.

How pathetic, but then again the Cowboys need all the help they can get after the way New Orleans embarrased them. Did I mention they just lost to the Detroit Lions who were originally 2 and 13?

I'm a Denver native and a true Broncos fan and the news hit us all here pretty damn hard. I heard about it on the news on Monday afternoon and I just couldn't believe it. I just happened to be driving by the area about an hour before it happened.

He was a great player but more importantly a great man altogether. On the news today they showed clips of him talking about how he was an only child and his big thing was to take care of his mother since she had taken care of him his whole life. He was also starting up some sort of community foundation in his home town.

They said Javon Walker was holding him while he died.

Sad, just sad.

The loss of ones life is never something to smile about. Very sad indeed a bright future and life went to waste it's a shame. Murder is really one of the top things to worry about in the world now days.