One is a rookie playing in only his second professional game. The other is a veteran in his 10th NFL season. On Sunday, they shared a similar role -- make up for the absence of one of the game's best receivers.
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And the rookie (Williams) and the veteran (Northcutt) each performed admirably.
Northcutt caught five passes for 70 yards, including a 25-yard touchdown pass from
Williams caught his first two professional passes for 18 and 19 yards late in the game when Detroit was driving for the touchdown that could potentially tie the game.
"I was just trying to do my assignment and make the plays that I could make," Williams said. "Daunte did a great job of delivering the ball so all I had to do was catch it."
Northcutt said that the role of a backup is to be ready at a moment's notice when the starter goes down.
"When it happens during the game you don't have time to think, 'oh my gosh, Calvin's a big part of this offense. He's one of the best receivers in this league.' When you're playing football, you just have to step up, try to understand what's going on, and hopefully, you've prepared yourself already," said Northcutt.
"Every week I make sure that I know if Calvin goes down, I know everything so I can step in. If Bryant (Johnson) goes down, do I know everything so I can go in and play his position? That's what the backup has to do at every position on the field. I just try to build chemistry with the quarterbacks and if called upon, make plays."
Williams had the same mindset when Johnson went to the sidelines.
"The first thing I thought was, 'oh shoot.' Calvin's a great receiver and a big part of our offense, but we practice every day and get reps, so when you're number's called you have to go in and make plays," Williams said.
Northcutt made 58 starts in his first nine NFL seasons with Cleveland and Jacksonville, but much of his time was spent as the third or fourth receiver. In 2003, he caught a career-high 62 passes for the Browns. The following season he started 11 of 16 games and had 55 catches for 806 yards.
Northcutt came to the Lions in June in a trade with the Jaguars for safety Gerald Alexander, and has been used sparingly as a receiver but has seen regular duty returning punts. Coming into Sunday's game, he had six catches for 48 yards.
Northcutt's touchdown pass came on a play that didn't click earlier in the game.
When the offense came off the field after that series, Northcutt and Culpepper stood on the sideline and discussed what had gone wrong.
"Daunte and I were on a different page as to what I was going to do so we talked about it on the sideline," Northcutt said. "I had a good feel for it, so on the touchdown throw it was the same play. I had a feeling Daunte was going to throw it. This time I just made sure I was in the right spot."
Williams admitted that it wasn't easy to adjust to a backup role after being one of the prime targets for Penn State's quarterbacks his last three seasons with the Nittany Lions.
"It had to be an adjustment, but I just wanted to learn as much as I could," Williams said. "I want to do whatever I can to help us win, whether it's on the scout team in practice or in games."
Williams has received plenty of advice from the veteran receivers -- the Johnsons and Northcutt -- and Detroit's receivers coach, Shawn Jefferson.
"Shawn is one of the greatest coaches you can have," Williams said. "I talk to him every day. It's a blessing to be with him because he played in this league for 13 years, so he knows what we see and the things that we go through
As the senior member of the receiving corps, Northcutt has tried to pass his knowledge along to the younger players like Williams.
"When you're a rookie, you never know when your first shot will come -- your first catch, your first punt or kickoff return -- so you always have to be ready," Northcutt said.
Northcutt was also there to boost Williams' spirits when the rookie was inactive for the Lions' first two games.
"When he was inactive the first game, I knew it was kind of hard for him, so I talked to him," Northcutt said. "He was used to playing at a high level in college, being drafted in the third round, so he knew he could play.
"When that happens, a young guy will start sinking down and thinking, 'I'm not good enough.' That's when a veteran is supposed to remind him that it's a long season and you'll get your chance, but you can't get down on yourself. You have to be prepared. Today he got his chance and he was ready."
