Rookies are not exactly given a ton of leeway when it comes to choosing their first numbers with their teams. They have to pick from a crop of numbers available to them out of a pool that's shrunken due to veterans already owning them or numbers having been retired. Also, there are numbers specific to certain positions, making the pool more like a puddle.
For Tyleik Williams, the Detroit Lions' first round pick and new defensive tackle, it's an experience he's still growing used to.
The former champion with The Ohio State University Buckeyes settled on a number prior to rookie minicamp - 78 - but per Pride of Detroit writer Jeremy Reisman, Williams is not really satisfied with that number just yet. It's just another rookie to add to the list of those who don't seem to love the numbers they've been able to snag ahead of the season - the public struggle to find a jersey number for Abdul Carter has been the most notable.
Williams does have a number he wants instead of 78. The problem? It's currently rocked by Levi Onwuzurike, number 91 on the Lions.
Williams wishes to get 91 from veteran Onwuzurike ahead of season
While Williams did tell reporters that he plans on trying to make 78 "look good," it'd probably make him really happy if Onwuzurike were willing to relinquish 91 considering he's expressing publicly that he's not totally sold on the number he's left with. According to Mike Payton of A to Z Sports, Williams is also not the only Detroit rookie unhappy with their number.
Drafted Lions rookies numbers are as follows, per the team:
Williams: 78
Tate Ratledge: 69
Isaac TeSlaa: 18
Miles Frazier: 71
Ahmed Hassanein: 61
Dan Jackson: 28
Dominic Lovett: 19
Honestly, from just a glance, these are solid numbers. 18 and 19 are pretty great wide receiver numbers - smaller but still in the double digits. Additionally, most of the Lions' draftees were players who will line their trenches on both sides of the ball, and these are all definitely numbers of linemen.
We'll see if there's any movement on these numbers ahead of the season, but players tend to be pretty attached to them, or even superstitious. We've even seen players get so attached to their numbers that they change their entire last names for them - hello, number 85 for the Cincinnati Bengals, retired wide receiver Chad Ochocinco.
Being upset with a number is probably the smallest potatoes of a conflict a rookie could have with a team entering camp, though, so it's nice to see that Lions players seem to only have gripes with that and nothing actually team or personnel related.
