The Facts: Williams was able to get on the field for Monday’s padded practice, but his return from a hamstring injury hasn’t been a totally smooth one. Williams showed well as a blocker, but dropped the first pass thrown his way and got into a scuffle with a teammate during an up-and-down day. After missing all of the offseason and 11 games as a rookie because of his recovery from a torn ACL, it’s understandable that the 2022 first-round pick is still finding his way but that process is complicated by the fact that Williams will miss the first six games of the season due to a gambling suspension.

Diehards Line: After Monday’s practice, Williams acknowledged the choppy start to his NFL career but said he’s confident the work he’s putting in now is going to pay off down the line. “Just work. That’s it,” Williams said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “Work. That’s all it takes is work and I’m going to work to be the best. One day it’s going to come.” As PFT suggests, the early stages of Williams’ career will be seen as foreshadowing if Williams doesn’t make good on that vow, but they will quickly become an afterthought if he turns out to be the player the Lions expect him to be.