‘The kid has…’: Dan Campbell discusses Jameson Williams

The Detroit Lions are encouraged with Jameson Williams’ development in 2023 and have high expectations for him in Year 3.

By the end of his second NFL season, Jameson Williams had established himself as a consistent contributor to the Detroit Lions offense. He played more over half of his snaps in each of his last 11 games in 2023 (including playoffs), and although averaging only 2.3 touches during that time, he was explosive when he was involved.

At the NFL Combine on Tuesday, Lions coach Dan Campbell expressed his satisfaction with Williams’ second-year growth.

“He progressed,” Campbell remarked. “When we brought him back from his suspension in Week 4 of the season, all we asked for was improvement. Simply get better. Just get a little better and become one of the guys, someone we can count on in this offense. Simply do your job. And that’s precisely what he did, and by the end of the year, we could tell he was really coming into his own.”

Williams’ NFL career certainly got off to a rough start. While it was expected that his debut season would be postponed as he recovered from an ACL tear earlier in the year, Williams did not appear to be a game changer when he returned to the field in 2022. He was targeted nine times during his debut season and caught only one pass—a 40-yard touchdown.

As the second year began, the fears grew even more. He dropped passes frequently during training camp, suffered a hamstring injury, and, worst of all, received a six-game ban (later reduced to four) for violating the league’s gambling policy.

However, following his comeback and continued hard work with quarterback Jared Goff, the majority of his game’s inconsistencies vanished, and he became a more consistent player on a down-to-down basis. Since Week 8, Williams has caught 26 of 39 targets, for a decent 66.7 completion rate. In the NFC Championship game, he recorded 67 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns.

Williams, who is currently in Year 3, is now “one of the guys.” The assumption is that he will begin to produce starter-level numbers.

“He is going to push to be a full-time starter now, and that’s what we’re looking for,” said Campbell. “We’ve said it before: everyone grows at a different rate, and while it may have taken him a little longer, he is developing and growing, and he is definitely a member of the team.” Come on, kids. So we have big aspirations for him, and we see him continuing to grow as long as he returns and puts in the effort—which we feel he will—because he has demonstrated that. He’ll just grow better and better.