The Lions signed Tyrell Williams, and I like the move. It’s a low-cost roll of the dice, and maybe they come up with a serviceable deep threat who can be their third receiver.
Williams wasn’t much of a factor in his two years with the Raiders. He missed all of last season after surgery on a torn labrum. But Williams was seen as good enough in the spring of 2019 that they signed him to a four-year deal worth $44 million. He’s only 29 years old.
When Williams was with the Chargers (pictured), he was most usually deployed as a deep threat. With good size (6-4, 205), he’s a larger, friendlier target on long passes down the sidelines. He averaged 42 catches for 691 yards in his final two seasons with the Chargers, with 4 and 5 TDs in those seasons, averaging 16.4 yards per reception.
Back in 2016, Williams showed he could be more than just a one-trick-pony deep threat. That was the year Keenan Allen tore his ACL in the season opener at Kansas City. That moved Williams into a more featured role, and he caught 69 passes for 1,059 yards and 7 TDs.
In the last 20 years, only 13 wide receivers who entered the league as undrafted free agents have gone over 1,000 yards. Williams is one of them.
| UNDRAFTED 1,000-YARD RECEIVERS (since 2000) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Rec | Yards | Avg | TD |
| 2000 | Rod Smith, Den. | 100 | 1,602 | 16.0 | 8 |
| 2011 | Wes Welker, N.E. | 122 | 1,569 | 12.9 | 9 |
| 2011 | Victor Cruz, NYG | 82 | 1,536 | 18.7 | 9 |
| 2018 | Adam Thielen, Min. | 113 | 1,373 | 12.2 | 9 |
| 2012 | Wes Welker, N.E. | 118 | 1,354 | 11.5 | 6 |
| 2009 | Wes Welker, N.E. | 123 | 1,348 | 11.0 | 4 |
| 2001 | Rod Smith, Den. | 113 | 1,343 | 11.9 | 11 |
| 2009 | Miles Austin, Dall. | 81 | 1,320 | 16.3 | 11 |
| 2017 | Adam Thielen, Min. | 91 | 1,276 | 14.0 | 4 |
| 2004 | Drew Bennett, Ten. | 80 | 1,247 | 15.6 | 11 |
| 2007 | Wes Welker, N.E. | 112 | 1,175 | 10.5 | 8 |
| 2008 | Wes Welker, N.E. | 111 | 1,165 | 10.5 | 3 |
| 2004 | Rod Smith, Den. | 79 | 1,144 | 14.5 | 7 |
| 2016 | Doug Baldwin, Sea. | 94 | 1,128 | 12.0 | 7 |
| 2005 | Rod Smith, Den. | 85 | 1,105 | 13.0 | 6 |
| 2020 | Robby Anderson, Car. | 95 | 1,096 | 11.5 | 3 |
| 2012 | Victor Cruz, NYG | 86 | 1,092 | 12.7 | 10 |
| 2006 | Mike Furrey, Det. | 98 | 1,086 | 11.1 | 6 |
| 2015 | Doug Baldwin, Sea. | 78 | 1,069 | 13.7 | 14 |
| 2016 | Tyrell Williams, S.D. | 69 | 1,059 | 15.4 | 7 |
| 2012 | Lance Moore, N.O. | 65 | 1,041 | 16.0 | 6 |
| 2010 | Miles Austin, Dall. | 69 | 1,041 | 15.1 | 7 |
| 2015 | Allen Hurns, Jac. | 64 | 1,031 | 16.1 | 10 |
| 2002 | Rod Smith, Den. | 89 | 1,027 | 11.5 | 5 |
| 2011 | Nate Washington, Ten. | 74 | 1,023 | 13.8 | 7 |
I am not, to clarify, suggesting Williams will be another Rod Smith, Adam Thielen or Doug Baldwin. If we’re making a binary “hit or miss?” decision, I will pick miss. But I think the signing makes sense. Per reports, it’s a one-year deal worth up to $6.2 million with incentives, but it would probably be more accurate to describe it as a modest contract that could escalate if Williams is a success. If Williams isn’t much of a factor, we could be looking at something more like $2 million for a year.
With the Lions in dire need of pass catchers, this looks like a decent gamble for them.
—Ian Allan