Former star Alabama WR headed for breakout year according to his HC: ‘He’s a man on a mission’

“Two practices in and if you said ‘give me one player that is the most improved from that start to finish,’ in that time, Jamo [Jameson Williams' nickname] would be that guy right there,” HC Dan Campbell told the media earlier this week. “He is a man on a mission, and I’m just going to leave it at that.”

Through two seasons in Detroit, Williams has a grand total of 25 receptions, 395 yards, and three scores. But the stat sheet only tells part of the story. 

The same ACL tear that knocked him out of the national title game against Georgia cost him the first 12 weeks of his rookie campaign, at which point, he was inserted on a pitch count for the remainder of the season, showing a couple of flashes in minimal action, including his first ever NFL touch. 

Largely a redshirt year in 2022, last season was supposed to be the breakout for Williams but around this time last year he was suspended for violating the NFL's gambling policy, costing him what was supposed to be his first six games. 

The league would revise the policy and reinstate Williams sooner however, largely due to the fact that Williams wasn't found to be gambling on the NFL, but merely making sports bets on his phone, in the facility, which the NFL still outlaws. 

Williams would go on to play in 12 games, starting in 10 of them, but the lack of reps early in the season was clearly a factor in the relationship between he and QB Jared Goff, as Williams caught only 24 passes on a lowly 42 targets. 

Now Williams did get better as the season went along, hooking up with Goff on a career-long 63-yard pass in Week 17, before kicking off the NFC Championship game with a 42-yard TD. 

And sure, there are plenty of mouths to feed on that Lions offense, but no WR will have as big a role as Williams outside of Amon-Ra St. Brown, and even he won't garner the downfield targets that Williams will. 

So I'm with Campbell here. A healthy, motivated, and undistracted Jameson Williams is going to show up and show out in 2024, rivaling the year that put him on the map when carving up defenses with the Crimson Tide.