Detroit Lions rookie defender Tyleik Williams has been having a solid time at training camp ahead of his debut season. The former Ohio State Buckeye has had to come back from an injury that held him back during OTAs, but he's still been earning some love from Lions coaches despite that setback.
Williams did not have a stellar time in training camp on the Tuesday ahead of the Lions' first preseason game of the 2025 season, though. He was consistently beat by fellow rookie Tate Ratledge in coverage, getting tossed to the ground at one point by the guard as Williams struggled to get any pressure on the quarterback during the Lions' scrimmages.
This dominance on Ratledge's part led to a pretty funny revelation from Williams, which he shared with reporters after the day was done.
A reporter asked if Williams had experienced his "Welcome to the NFL" moment yet during training camp, and he said he had: against Ratledge, another rookie also bound to experience his welcome moment soon.
"Tate got me pretty good. I don't know if y'all seen it. But, he got me pretty good today, for sure. It was a long drive and he just came off ball, he hit me. So, iron sharpens iron. I'll have my good plays, he's gonna have his good plays. He got me today, for sure," said Williams.
Williams got 'Welcome to the NFL' moment from unexpected source
The two rookies will be cheering one another on this season with Ratledge seemingly inching towards first team consideration at right guard with Graham Glasgow leaving that position open, and with Williams needing to step up in Alim McNeill's extended absence. So, it's for the best that the two are challenging one another like this in training camp.
READ MORE: 3 standouts and 2 duds from Tuesday's Lions training camp practice
Neither will be playing against the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night, but head coach Dan Campbell indicated that both will get some reps in during their second preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons. Other rookies to keep tabs on include Dominic Lovett, Isaac TeSlaa, and Ahmed Hassanein.
Detroit is known for their ability to mold their under 25 players into bonafide stars, with a great drafting track record over the last few years. Williams is expected to become a solid defensive tackle for them who can provide additional help to players like Aidan Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport, and can help to make new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard look very food in his first year at the helm of the unit.