FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Growing up in Reform, Alabama, New England Patriots tight end Michael Williams wasn’t dreaming big when it came to football.
Then he watched Tony Dixon and everything changed.
“He was the first player out of Reform to actually go somewhere. He was the player who opened my eyes that 'this can happen from this small town,'" Williams recalled this week. “Before him, you never even thought about it; you’d play up to high school and then it’s over. He made it out and right then, I said, ‘I’m going to follow his footsteps.