Jameson Williams reaches out to Matthew Stafford to wear his number with Detroit Lions

There’s a new No. 9 in Detroit after the departure of quarterback Matthew Stafford to the Los Angeles Rams. Former Alabama wide receiver Jameson Williams will be the one wearing the jersey number now, and he did so with Stafford’s blessing.

Williams was originally set to wear No. 18, which paid respect to former Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who had the same number except flipped around from 81 to 18. But then Williams decided he wanted a single-digit number instead and so he contacted Stafford and ultimately decided on No. 9.

#Lions rookie Jameson Williams has officially switched his jersey to No. 9 — Matthew Stafford’s old Detroit number. He was looking for a single digit number and actually reached out to Stafford on his own via text as an act of courtesy, according to a source. Classy move. pic.twitter.com/wzkhJmQRQd

— Eric Woodyard (@E_Woodyard) August 10, 2022

Williams is currently recovering from a torn ACL from back in January when he tore his ACL in the national championship game against Georgia. There is no timetable for his return.

“I mean, absolutely – we want get him out there as fast as possible, and is it crucial. It is crucial, but not until he get his strength up,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said according to a report from ESPN’s Eric Woodyard. “He needs a lot of strength development in that body, his lower extremities–legs, knees, everything. So, until he’s able to stabilize himself, and really get some strength that we feel good about to where he can protect himself.”

Williams finished out the 2021 season at Alabama with 79 receptions for 1,572 yards with 15 touchdowns.

Crissy Froyd

Crissy covers SEC football news for Saturday Down South.