DT Nick Williams takes pay cut to stick with the Lions

DT Nick Williams takes pay cut to stick with the Lions

Nick Williams will be back in Detroit for a second season. The defensive tackle was commonly mentioned as a potential salary cap victim, but Williams and the Lions found a workaround.

Per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, Williams has agreed to restructure his contract and take a pay cut to remain with the Lions in 2021. Williams lowered his base salary from $4.1 million to just $1.25 million.

From Over The Cap, it appears Williams swapped some of the lost salary to prorated bonus and per-game bonuses. The Lions converted $500,000 into a guaranteed bonus for Williams.

The defensive tackle tweeted an ambiguous message last week that led to speculation he was either taking a pay cut or getting cut after one underwhelming season in Detroit. Williams, 31, had one sack and 23 tackles in 13 starts and 14 total games in 2020.