The 2024 NFL campaign will be a now-or-never one for Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams. After two consecutive seasons of experiencing setbacks before his season even began, the No. 12 overall selection in the 2022 NFL Draft finally has a clear runway to meet his pre-draft potential.
Lions general manager Brad Holmes made an aggressive trade-up to select Williams in 2022 despite knowing he suffered a torn ACL in the National Championship Game. Williams was placed on the reserve/non-football injury list to start the season as a result and didn’t begin practicing until November. His rookie campaign was essentially a write-off with him recording one catch while playing in just six games.
Williams' sophomore 2023 campaign was supposed to be different, but that's when an unexpected off-field setback arrived. The former Alabama standout was suspended four games for violating the NFL's gambling policy. Once again suffering through adversity, Williams made an in-season return and accumulated a modest 24 receptions for 354 yards and two touchdowns.
All the distractions should be behind Williams now. For the first time in his professional career, he spent OTAs and mandatory minicamp healthy and available. Lions head coach Dan Campbell recently called Williams the most improved player of the offseason.
#Lions HC Dan Campbell on Jameson Williams:
— The Coachspeak Index (@CoachspeakIndex) May 23, 2024
“If you said, ‘give me one player that is the most improved [this offseason],’ Jamo would be that guy right now. He is a man on a mission, and I’m just gonna leave it at that.”
Campbell has a 90% reliability rating on depth chart and… pic.twitter.com/5R0EYPtfvM
Williams could also be penciled into a starting role in an explosive Lions offense following the departure of Josh Reynolds in unrestricted free agency. That frees up 64 targets in a Lions passing attack that averaged a second-ranked 258.8 air yards per game last season. Expect Williams to be on the receiving end of plenty of those newly available opportunities as the WR2 opposite Amon-Ra St. Brown. Kalif Raymond and Donovan Peoples-Jones don’t pose a threat to Williams like Reynolds did.
There simply isn't another receiver on the Lions roster that offers quarterback Jared Goff the deep-threat option like Williams can. St. Brown is an outstanding weapon that wins in the short and intermediate areas underneath the coverage. Tight end Sam LaPorta will continue dominating up the seam. If Williams develops into the take-the-top-off-the-defense wideout he's capable of consistently being, the Lions will arguably have the most explosive and diverse offense in the NFL.
Wiggle room is present. Williams saw just 12 deep targets (20-plus yards) last season according to Pro Football Focus' charting. That ranked 64th among all qualifying receivers. Beginning the new campaign in a starting role could help Williams double those deep-ball opportunities this season.
Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson loves to spread the ball around and other playmakers on the roster should experience an increase in workload. Sophomore running back Jahmyr Gibbs has room to expand his pass-catching contribution after being targeted 71 times throughout his rookie campaign.
There have been fleeting moments of explosiveness for Williams through two completed seasons. Unlike his rookie and sophomore campaigns, no setbacks are expected to arrive during training camp or the preseason. Williams is primed to enjoy a breakout year.
