Detroit Lions former first-round pick Tyleik Williams did not have the rookie season that he expected to have. So, the notable defensive tackle lost 50-pounds in an effort to live up to his draft potential.
Williams said that he is feeling a lot better than he did entering the NFL.
The defensive tackle dropped a lot of weight and arrived at training camp with a goal to make a bigger difference.
“Rookie year wasn’t really up to my standard,” said Williams. “I lost weight this year, and I feel good.”
Williams added weight during his rookie season and was not proud of that. He credits a change to his lifestyle outside of football as the reason for the weight loss.
“Diet and a lot of walking, a lot of walking,” said Williams.
Williams noted that he enjoys listening to podcasts and just being in nature. This allows the time to fly by when he is on his walks. He also noted that the biggest thing he did was cut out sandwiches and how big of portions he was eating.
“Podcasts, music, enjoying nature,” said Williams. “But just stuff like sandwiches, a bunch of carbs, just limiting what I was eating. Not eating big portions and stuff like that.”
Detroit Lions Defensive Tackle is Down to 325 Pounds
GettyTyleik Williams #91 of the Detroit Lions
Earlier this offseason, head coach Dan Campbell discussed the potential impact of having Williams at a much leaner weight and how proud he was of Williams.
“I’m really proud of him, really proud of him,” Campbell said. “He’s a man of his word. Before we drafted him, we sat up there, Brad [Holmes] and I did, and said, ‘Is there going to be an issue with your weight, ever?’ ‘No.’ He came in, he noticed that he was a little bit heavy in the spring. He came in two weeks before our program even started and was pretty heavy and said, ‘I want to get this right.’ He put in the work. Scott did a great job with him and got him right.”
The Lions drafted him in the first round because they trusted he would take these things seriously. So, his living up to his word is important for Campbell. Now, the Lions are hoping for him to take a step forward on the field as well.
Lions Want More From Tyleik Williams
Last season, Williams played 446 snaps, which amounted to 40% of the team’s defensive snaps. The Lions kept him on a pitch count to keep him fresh. Now that he is in better shape this year, the plan is to give him a higher number of snaps.
D.J. Reader played 583 snaps and took on 53% of the defensive work. Now that Reader is gone, the Lions are looking for something closer to those numbers from Williams.
Reader had 20 pressures and 14 run stops, according to PFF. Williams had 19 pressures and 12 stops in his rookie year. So, Williams just has to take on more of the workload and continue to produce at the same rate, and the team will have an upgrade.
This sounds like it is asking a lot, but Detroit drafted him in the first round to do just that.
Lions First-Round Pick Reveals Key to Major Personal Change