Before an early rash of injuries on the defensive line, the Lions were going to lean on Tyleik Williams as a rookie. Now Levi Onwuzurike is done for the season and Josh Paschal is sidelined into September, joining Alim McNeill on the shelf.
Does he feel the weight on his shoulders?
"Of course, I gotta step up," Williams said Thursday after the fourth practice of training camp, with the pads set to come on Friday. "I got drafted where I got drafted for a reason. They obviously think I can play and help this team. I just gotta step up to the plate and do that. I’m ready for it, though."
Between Onwuzurike and McNeill, who won't be back until midseason, the Lions have lost the bulk of their interior pass-rush next to nose DJ Reader. Williams, drafted 28th overall, was mostly a run-stuffer at Ohio State, where the scheme asked tackles to cage-rush and contain the quarterback more than penetrate the backfield. But the Lions see three-down ability in Williams, much like they did in McNeill as a third-round pick in 2021.
"To me, he’s Baby Mac," Dan Campbell said after the second practice of camp. "Same type of player. What you already see after two days, he's a pretty instinctive guy. He understands football. We just gotta get the urgency up, like all the rookies."
Williams is built like Reader at 6'3, 330 lbs, but has the agility and footwork to play the three-technique, again like McNeill. He's taken most of his reps next to Reader in the early stages of camp, which is where the Lions see him playing this fall.
He admitted after Thursday's practice that "the game speed is a little faster than I thought it was going to be," but feels himself adjusting well. He walked off the field with defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard, "asking him how he wants me to play certain blocks, because in college we played a different way, in different schemes."
Defensive tackles don't often stand out in camp before the pads come on. Williams is no different, though he did bat down a pass by Jared Goff with a strong push up the middle during 11-on-11's on Tuesday. He's already claimed Onwuzurike's No. 91. The upgrade from No. 78 suits a player who says "I have it all in my bag." Fellow rookie Tate Ratledge, who's preparing for a starting role himself on the other side of the trenches, has already seen some of the clubs.
"He’s powerful. He’s strong. He’s got a good bull rush and he’s also quick," Ratledge said Thursday. "So it’s kind of a guessing game with him, which one he’s gonna give you."
Williams smiled at the nickname Baby Mac. He appreciates the comparison to a rising player who signed a $97 million extension after proving himself as a pass-rusher: "I love him. I would want to be him one day. Being that guy they look up to and wanting to go out there and make plays, I definitely want to fill that role, for sure."
He definitely might have to from the jump.