Offseason catch-up: Dallas Cowboys’ Sam Williams launches athletic clothing line
For players in the NFL, the offseason downtime can be a productive time to enter into other ventures away from the field. For Dallas Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams, he’s had nothing but downtime lately.
After tearing his ACL in the first week of training camp last July, Williams missed the entire 2024 season and was forced to rehab for the last 11 months. In that time, he dove into a passion of his that he had been looking for the time to build since entering the NFL in 2022: clothing.
“I’ve had a lot of downtime,” Williams said. “I was starting to do it like two years ago. With football, every time I was getting ready to start [the clothing line], I’d have to go train or camp is coming around, the season is coming around.”
In April, Williams officially launched For The Family (FTF) Clothing with a women’s athleisure line that has quickly become a profitable venture.
“With me being out [with injury], I went all-in with the clothes,” he said. “I just started. It went from me passing out what I had to players’ wives and people I go to the gym with. I guess the word got out and I sold out. Once I sold out, I bought more. Then, people just started throwing suggestions. It just took off from there, really.”
“Once I saw how much money I made is when I really started selling them.”
The hard part for Williams’ side venture is done in getting his line off the ground. Now as he gears up for a return to the field in 2025, he will be looking to launch seasonal lines such as men’s athleisure, his & her’s jumpsuits and loungewear in the fall and jackets and sweatsuits in the winter.
“The summer drop is coming,” he said.
Player wives such as quarterback Dak Prescott’s fiance Sarah Jane Ramos have voiced public support for Williams’ brand, complimenting its comfort and flexibility. He’ll now look to expand his clientele even further with his impending releases.
Heading into his fourth NFL season, Williams has 8.5 sacks and 48 total tackles in 32 games. After being selected in the second round in 2022, Williams finished fifth in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting across the league.
