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Lions first-round DL is ‘touch and go’ coming out of Week 4
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- Lions first-round DL is ‘touch and go’ coming out of Week 4
ALLEN PARK -- Detroit Lions defensive lineman Tyleik Williams was spotted with a walking boot on his left foot in the locker room on Sunday night.
He told reporters it was just a precautionary move after they lost 32-26 to the Carolina Panthers. Lions coach Dan Campbell didn't make it sound like a long-term issue when asked the next day back at the team facility. However, it's something worth keeping tabs on when the Lions return to practice.
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"Tyleik is touch and go. He'll be day-to-day," Campbell said.
Another aspect to watch with injuries this week is that Detroit has just one game sitting between them and the bye week. The team's defensive line might be the lone bright spot on that side of the ball, so they could opt to play it safe with Williams.
Lions defensive lineman Alim McNeill has created 14 pressures across the last two weeks, getting to the quarterback in back-to-back games. McNeill and pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson lead their respective positions in pressures and snaps played across the NFL through four games.
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Williams has played 162 snaps to this point, a touch more than 50% of the defensive share. That's an increase of about 10% based on his rookie campaign's figures. The 2025 first-round pick has eight pressures, seven quarterback hits and has been mostly solid against the run this season.
On the bright side, McNeill has returned to his previous disruptive form after a quiet 2025 coming back from his ACL injury. After McNeill and Williams, sixth-round rookie Skyler Gill-Howard has been next in the order on the interior. Levi Onwuzurike has carved out a depth role despite some early-season roster maneuvering and a quiet training camp.
If Williams needs time to rest the unspecified injury, then Tyler Lacy is another option to see even more inside-outside usage. It sounds like there is hope for the big man in the middle this week, though.
Williams has yet to miss a game through his young career, starting 14 times, not to mention all four games in 2026.
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