Flying DeAngelo

Veteran running back DeAngelo Williams (Wynne) tried his hand at wrestling over the weekend. It could have gone horribly wrong for him.

Williams, participating in Impact Wrestling’s Slammiversary XV on Sunday, capped a tagteam match he participated in by climbing to the top rope and jumping from the turnbuckle. Williams’ target was lying on a folding table.

So Williams hit the body on the table with his torso, and his head went past the table and slammed onto the mat. Williams literally could have broken his neck.

“This is what happens when it’s real and people think it’s fake,” Williams said on Twitter, posting the video of the climb, jump, landing and eventual pin. “But the money is real.”

Much of wrestling is fake, but the stunts are real, and the risk of serious injury is always present. While it’s unclear how Williams was supposed to properly land when jumping onto a large human lying on a flimsy portable table, it’s safe to assume he wasn’t supposed to take a header onto the mat.

So, yes, the danger is real. Perhaps even more real than it is in the NFL, which could still come calling for Williams once injuries to other tailbacks occur.