No one on the Lions wore No. 9 last season out of respect for Matthew Stafford, who was traded to the Rams after 12 seasons in Detroit. But in 2022, No. 9 will make its return.
Rookie receiver Jameson Williams will wear Stafford’s old number, and he made sure to get the quarterback’s blessing first. According to Eric Woodyard, Williams texted Stafford about the switch before making it official.
Williams originally planned to wear No. 18 with the Lions, but he made the change recently with the preseason getting underway this weekend.
The Lions selected Williams with the 12th overall pick in the draft this year. He’s currently on the non-football injury list and recovering from a torn ACL suffered at Alabama, so it might be a little while before Lions fans see No. 9 on the field again.
#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
