In fact, Montgomery said when he got back to the facility after a couple of weeks off, “Jamo was already here.” While there’s still some room for growth, Williams seems to have the utmost confidence from the coaching staff that he’ll get there.
Montgomery echoed Morton’s sentiments about Williams’ development in the classroom, saying he’s “really satisfied with where he is right now, but we got a long way to go.”
“Probably one of the better meetings I’ve ever seen him in in (that) setting. It was a total offensive meeting where you talk about the communication level and the questions and the football IQ and the acumen that he was asking questions about is what you really wanted to see, and that’s what we got to do,” Montgomery said.
“Are we where we want to be? No, we’re not there yet. … We want to take baby steps. He keeps developing the way he’s at, the way he’s doing right now, he’s going to get to a location that he really, really likes.”
There’s more being said between the lines than people probably realize.
*Jamo saw what ARSB got and what other WR’s are getting and he wants to get paid.
*Jamo felt he had arrived last season. He wanted a contract extension and to be paid. He got the 5th year option and was told he isn’t there yet.
*There were rumors he was on the trading block predraft… (Theres real smoke here)
Ask yourself why would the Lions entertain trade talks?..
*It is hard to have two big WR’s contracts and still pay a high level TE. Signing Jamo long term might mean you lose Laporta.
*Jamo has some off the field issues and isn’t the most mature WR. He does have some Diva in him.
*Jamo is super talented and the Lions would love to keep him but is it really feasible?
Let’s assume for a minute all of this is factual hint… it is (I don’t want to debate any of that)
So what would the Lions do…
They would test the market on his trade value. Hence the trade talk rumors.
They would draft some WR’s to groom as replacements.
They would throw the 5th year option on him. Giving him a year to boost his value and then possibly trade him next year.
They would tell Jamo he has areas to work on. They would tell him he’s not there yet but still be encouraging to him to help him grow. Help him boost his value.
No one wants this kid getting disgruntled. So taking baby steps is key.
Jamo is gonna want to get paid next off season if he has another solid year. There’s a good chance he really breaks out this year. Which will give him leverage to negotiate an extension. The Lions will either pay the man or trade the man.
I don’t really know what they do, the " a little bit of diva in him" is okay but if he doesn’t get what he wants how does he react? Lots of unknowns, at this point play 2025 and deal with it next March
I have no concrete evidence other than watching and listening to the player but my gut tells me that Jamo struggles a little intellectually. He is uber talented and loves football. Working hard is not an issue. So why has he been a little slower to develop (minus the suspension time?). I just think it takes him longer to grasps concepts than some other players. His instincts are “go get ball - play hard”. Fitting into a specific scheme, how, why, where and for what purpose - it’s not automatic for him. He needs repetition stacked on top of repetition. If he gets the mental side down his talent can make him a truly remarkable player. I am sure the staff gets his talent and his shortcomings and are playing a balancing game of “will he get there?”, “when will he get there?”, and can we afford to spend the money IF he shows us he cannot.
The Jamo koolaid is essentially pure moonshine at this point. Perhaps Morton will feature him more. Jamo had over a 1000 yards and was only getting about 5 targets per game. Then again only 1 football. LaPorta is capable of more too if he gets the targets.
That was the biggest difference between 2023 and 2024.
Jamo seemed to get some of the work in 2024 that was given to LaPorta in 2023.
I’m hearing a lot about how Jamo will be featured this season. Things have been eerily quiet on the LaPorta front other than the drafting of a WR (TeSlaa) who might be able to take over some of LaPorta’s role if LaPorta isn’t resigned.
I love Jamo. He is such a likable kid and you have got to give him respect for doing a complete 180 and really working at his craft. I really really hope we can make something work long term and there are less than a handful of guys who has change games like Jamo can.
With that said, the smart play is to build up his value this year and trade him in the offseason. Very difficult to pay two WRs 30+mil. St Brown is still very young and is a much safer bet long term. There is still some risk with Jamo’s maturity and what happens when he gets paid. Paying Jamo 35milAAV+ on an extension just doesn’t make sense if we are talking about losing a player like LaPorta who will get around 20mil AAV.
Throw in the fact that we would likely be looking at a 1st round pick+ if we trade Jamo, and it seems like that is the most logical choice.
Jamo developed into a pretty good WR2 last year and became the #2 option in the passing game and we can all see there is still “plenty of meat on the bone” as far as development.
I think the coaches are truly excited to see what he can become at his peak. Jamo has the potential to be the best WR2 (Higgins, Devonta Smith, Waddle) in the league and could become a true WR1B with increased target volume.
The Jamo Diva talk is completely unwarranted.
Jamo comes to work, keeps his mouth shut and doesn’t make any demands. There is no Diva in him at all.
He is an immature, goof-ball free spirit with ADHD.
He is like a high school sophomore that everyone loves.
I’m not going to question his intelligence.
The Lions offense with Goff is an extremely detailed time and place passing game that requires an incredible amount of precision and detail.
I don’t think it’s anything that Jamo can’t understand but he has never had to play with the kind of route discipline required in this offense.
In high school and college when players have that much speed they are asked to run slants, crossers and deep routes and the QB just puts the ball in front of him.
We saw this past season Jamo more often than not was in the right place at the right time and that should continue to improve.
As for LaPorta, Jamo did take some of his targets in becoming the #2 option on the team, but the Lions passed a lot less in 2024 than they did in 2023.
The Lions threw the ball 55 fewer times in 2024.
Almost 2 games worth of passes (based on there avg. o 32 per game).
Also, teams schemed to take away the middle of the field. The thought was to make Goff throw to the outside instead of his comfort zone over the middle to ARSB and LaPorta.
The target shift from LaPorta to Jamo worked out better for the Lions. The offense was far more explosive producing more passing yards on 55 fewer attempts.
As for Jamo wanting to get paid, of course he does, every player wants to get paid.
But I think Jamo knows he will get paid one way or another if he continues to work and mature.
If Jamo takes another step forward as the coaches anticipate, Holmes will have no problem paying him what he is worth. Many teams, including the Super Bowl Champs, have two high paid WR’s.
I really like LaPorta but if it comes down to a choice, it is much easier to replace a high end TE than a high end WR with Elite Speed.
I can’t think of another receiver with Jamo’s speed that is constantly demonstrating the ability and willingness to get down field and throw crucial blocks.
