You just dodged a … well, let’s just say you avoided another NFL suspension, and avoided missing time for a third straight season.
This news comes courtesy of a league spokesperson who told the Free Press on Wednesday that the NFL would not discipline the Detroit Lions receiver over a gun-related traffic stop in October.
That comes on the heels of a decision in November by Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy not to charge Williams, citing legal ambiguity as it pertained to a concealed weapons charge and whether it could be applied to Williams as a passenger in his brother’s car.
Now there’s a chance Williams could actually play all 17 regular-season games for the first time in his career.
Williams has played in just 33 of the Lions’ 51 regular-season games the past three years — 64.7% — with most of the missing games coming in the first 12 weeks of his 2022 rookie season as he recovered from a torn ACL. That wasn’t his fault.
But when he had a chance to make up for lost time, he missed the first four games in 2023 for violating the NFL’s gambling policy. Then, last year, he missed two games (in October and November) for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.
So now he’s getting a chance to finally play in all 17 games. He’s coming off a banner year, when he finished with 1,001 receiving yards and even garnered votes for comeback player of the year — though I’m not sure how you reward someone for coming back from their own dunderheaded mistake.
Honestly, I wonder if it might have been better for the NFL to suspend Williams. And in this case, I’m talking about Williams the person, not Williams the football player who makes the Lions better (and earns you fantasy points).
Because something still isn’t clicking with him when it comes to understanding the serious consequences of his actions. And this latest incident is the most serious yet.
The gambling and PES problems pale in comparison to the gun incident, which not only could have, but probably should have, come with jail time. But the gun incident also speaks to Williams’ dangerous lifestyle and the entitlement he clearly believes he’s due as an NFL player, which was caught on video while he made child-like pleas to the Detroit Police to let him go because he had practice in the morning.
At every turn, after every transgression, Williams has handled his issues professionally and has accepted responsibility by speaking with reporters about his mistakes. But then, just as easily, he has continued to make poor decisions on the field while taking unnecessary penalties that hurt the team, such as getting a taunting penalty for throwing a ball at a Bears player or engaging in vulgar touchdown celebrations that incurred fines.
Williams is in hot water so often it feels like he should simply walk around the locker room dressed in his best Steve Urkel glasses and suspenders as he responds to reporters’ questions with “Did I do that?”
Maybe some of it is due to his age and immaturity. He turns 24 in March and, like all young people, he probably thinks he’ll be young forever. But the NFL especially has a way of aging people and doing it harshly.
Williams will be on the team for the next two seasons, with the Lions all but guaranteed to pick up his 2026 option. After that, he will face the possibility of an extension or free agency at age 26, likely with about five years left in his prime. And that’s barring a major injury or more off-the-field problems.
If I were a betting man, I’d wager the Lions extend Williams. And even if they don’t, someone else will surely sign him. But Williams’ time in the NFL will end much sooner than he realizes. It does for almost everyone.
The Lions can’t be thrilled with Williams’ constant problems. As far back as 2023, when he was explaining the organization’s support of Williams after his gambling suspension, coach Dan Campbell said: “But we’re also not here to hold your hand. We’re here to help you along the way.”
Williams has to understand that’s a two-way street. The Lions will only help him as long as he’s helping them win. He will have a great chance to do exactly that now that he avoided another NFL suspension.
Even if all the warnings and punishments he has received from his coaches and the league haven’t set him straight so far, I hope Williams understands the gravity of this incident and the consequences he avoided on and off the field. An NFL suspension would have helped underscore that missing a few games is nothing compared to the danger that comes with riding around in cars with guns late at night.
.
Leave a Reply