Jameson Williams showed why Detroit Lions drafted him, and why there's reason to worry

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Fair article, talks about the needed improvement but also points out some positives including some things that didn’t come out in the broadcast.

Williams was so excited a coach had to track him down to send him on the field for the two-point attempt. If you’re inclined to nitpick, you might get on him for forgetting about the next play, and the possibility that he might have been needed.

Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams (9) misses a catch against New York Giants cornerback Deonte Banks (36) during the first half of a preseason game at Ford Field in Detroit on Friday, Aug. 11, 2023.

Or, if you’re inclined to be patient, as this franchise will surely have to be with him, then point to his sprint to Alexander in a the Lions’ 21-16 preseason win over the Giants. That’s the sign of someone who is engaged. It’s also a sign of a good teammate.

“That doesn’t shock me with Jamo,” said Dan Campbell, “Jamo, man … listen, at the end of the day you could tell he gets excited for his teammates. He’s in it.”

And?
“He’s got growth to do.”
A lot of it

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And this from the article:
All in all a night of growth for JW, lots of reps and it sounds like Teddy will be an asset for him beyond just throwing the ball based on previous articles.

He also dropped a pass, just off his fingertips, and got mixed up on route with Nate Sudfeld that led to the quarterback’s first interception. Sudfeld got hit as he threw it and maybe it wouldn’t have mattered anyway.

Campbell was more forgiving, saying the pick wasn’t either Sudfeld or Williams’ fault.

“I don’t count that one,” he said. “I put that on us.”

Even if he’s being generous, Sudfeld’s second interception was, in part, the fault of Williams’ lack of route precision and awareness. Then again, the throw was high and wide.

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And, finally,

What can’t be questioned about the young speedster is his obvious love of football. That isn’t a given for everyone, even at this level. He likes physicality and blocking and is obviously fearless.

That’ll give him a chance, as will his speed. Again, he’s played in six games.
Six.

Friday was his first preseason game. This is his first training camp. And, as Campbell said, he considers Williams almost like a rookie.

“I kind of feel like he’s starting from Square 1,” he said.

Dismiss that as spin if you wish, but Campbell doesn’t tend to coddle his players at the microphone. He’ll be the first to tell you that Williams has a “long way to go.
He’ll also tell you when he thinks a player is moving forward, as he believes Williams did Friday night, and has since, oh, about a week ago or so.

“I feel like his approach has been really good the last seven days,” said Campbell. “He’s taken a total leap. This was Step 1.”

*If Williams deserves blame for at least one of the picks, then he deserves credit for stopping another. In the third quarter, Sudfeld threw to Williams over the middle, only the pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage and tumbled through the air like a spinning bag of potatoes. *

A Giants’ defender had a bead on the wounded ball until Williams subtly shoved him offline and may have even grabbed a jersey. The defense Williams played was a gamble, sure, but it prevented a pick, and as much as the Giants protested, no flag was thrown.

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If Jamo was a stock, I’m not a buyer.

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I would be. Buy low at this point and watch the value go up and up over the next 18mo

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hilariously unsatisfying

he had good catches and boneheaded drops

i guess this is the story of this preseason

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I have zero confidence that he’ll ever be a good player for us. The kid has marbles for brains. I hope I’m wrong but call me skeptical.

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He’s an Uber-talented, inconsistent player. My prediction is that he may eventually put up an 80 catch, 1200 yard season or two. But right now it looks like he’s not going to do that consistently. He needs way more reps than most to settle in.

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Well, he’s not going anywhere for the foreseeable future so we’ll obviously hope for the very best.

But at this point I had hoped for more from Jamo than “he’s really fast and loves football.”

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One thing he needs to learn is to protect his persona from drama-hungry Detroit sports radio shows and their callers…that means staying off social media.

Now he has this stigma; and let’s be honest: his appearance doesn’t help, in a divided town…

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How does someone on an Alabama strength and nutrition program (and then Lions strength and nutrition program) full time for many years, still remain stick thin and built like a baby deer?

It’s just weird to see a guy that’s skinnier than your typical marathoner, out there on the field with giants.

(look at his legs in the photo posted by the OP … there doesn’t appear to be anything there to prevent his knee from dislocating on his next cut)

Not body shaming the dude. It’s just kind of shocking.

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I’m not here to take a victory lap. I’m not. I want this kid to somehow turn into a viable option in the passing game. But I see exactly what I feared. A guy who doesn’t belong in the nfl and who would be a fringe roster player if he was picked later. Not Holmes best moment as GM.

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This is gonna be a headache of topic that lasts for like

2 years isnt it lol

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I’d buy lots of stock in Jamo. He’s a full effort player, never had issues there. He was a total stud in Alabama. You look at the year that Bryce won the Heisman, that doesn’t happen without Jamo. Bryce wasn’t even close the next year. He’s probably a bit of an ad-libber much like Bryce was and they ad-libbed together to tear teams apart. Now, he’s with Goff and Goff is not an ad-libber, so it might not be an ideal match, but he’s just too good of a player with too good of a motor to not be really good.

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If jamo catches that deep ball nobody should be saying anything today but he didnt. If he catches that and has 3-4 rec and 60-70 yards, did he not do his job?

Does he run perfect routes… no
Will he catch every pass… no

Has he shown that at a minimum his athletic traits and love of the game are there… i believe so and for a 22 year old getting his first real taste of the nfl that performed the way he did in college, i will take that and buy the idea that he can be what holmes thinks he can.

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“not taking a victory lap” Of course not, there is absolutely no reason to take one.

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Smart football play.
Sentence after the above;

It was a clever move. A football move and not all that dissimilar to the motivation that thrust him down the sideline from the bench to meet Alexander after the punt return

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Jameson was considered by many (most) as WR#1 in his class. Those traits did not disappear. He’ll be fine.

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Ask Devonta.

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Was I the only one who thought Jamo short-armed the jump for the 2nd interception?..idk, maybe the camera angle made it look like the ball was within his reach when it wasn’t but they showed that replay a few times and every time it seemed more convincing to me that he had a shot at grabbing that pass but heard foot steps.

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