There’s an old saying that goes like, “you don’t know what you got until it’s gone.” Well, in the case of the Detroit Lions and Tyrell Williams, he was gone so long the Lions never saw what they had in him this season. And now, they never will. 

On Friday afternoon, the Lions waived Williams from the reserved/injured list. And they did it with an injury settlement. Williams has been out of action for the Lions since Week 1. 

He suffered a brain injury during the 41-33 loss to the 49ers and immediately entered the league’s concussion protocol. Last month, Lions head coach Dan Campbell stated that Williams’ return to the team did not look good. 

“That doesn’t look good right now. I would say that’s still off in the distance for sure,” Campbell said during an appearance on the team’s flagship radio station. 

The Lions signed Williams to a one-year deal in March, worth up to $6 million. With the exits of Marvin Jones and Kenny Golladay in free agency, there were high hopes for Williams’ arrival. From the time he signed throughout the preseason, the expectation was he’d be Jared Goff’s primary target. 

As we now know, that did not pan out. 

With the Lions waiving Williams, they will finish this season without two targets they signed as primary options. The Lions also signed Breshad Perriman, son of Lions great Brett, to a one-year. And he didn’t even make the 53-man roster, as the team released before the season’s start. 

Williams’ departure from the team already has the Lions fanbase buzzing on social media. Some wonder if the Lions will add anyone from free agency or the waiver wire to fill a dire need at wideout. 

While they may make a move, the Lions waiving Tyrell Williams, who was on IR, does not free up a roster spot. If they were to add a wideout option via free agency or the waiver wire, they’d still need to let go of another player.

The recently-released DeSean Jackson is a name that’s popped up as a possible target for the Lions. However, it’s unlikely. The Lions, who have top priority on the waiver wire, had the chance to claim the 34-year-old vet. 

And they didn’t. 

Jackson, who’s now to sign with any team, probably wouldn’t choose a winless team to continue his career. 

One name raising eyebrows is Odell Beckham Jr. The Browns and OBJ agreed on terms to his release on Friday morning. Despite that, as of 4:30 pm on Friday, the Browns haven’t processed the transaction. 

And again, it’s not likely the Lions will go after him. The next several days in Motown should be very interesting for Lions talk, especially if they waive another player. 

Follow Kory Woods on Twitter at KoryEWoods.