Lions make big move for Williams

The Lions traded up 20 spots to select Alabama WR Jameson Williams with the 12th overall pick of the 2022 NFL Draft. Detroit sent the 32nd, 34th, and 66th picks to Minnesota to make the big move. A torn left ACL suffered in January’s National Championship prevented Williams from working out in the pre-draft process. But the tape is clear: Williams has unnatural speed. He blows by defenders in his routes and destroys angles after the catch. He averaged a huge 19.9 yards per catch at Alabama last year, including 9.3 yards after the catch, and scored 4 TDs of 70+ yards. Williams led the Tide and ranked top 5 in the nation with 1,572 yards and 15 TDs. He also averaged 35.2 yards per kick return with 2 TDs, earning SEC Co-Special Teams Player of the Year honors. That, curiously, followed 2 mostly invisible seasons at Ohio State, where Williams totaled just 15 catches. It’s worth factoring into his NFL projection – but it’s tough to look at his 2021 production and tape and not come away excited. We’ll, of course, need to keep an eye on that left knee. Williams underwent surgery on January 13. University of Alabama team orthopedic surgeon Dr. Lyle Cain, who did the procedure, said in March that he expects Williams to be ready by training camp. When healthy, he’ll join D.J. Chark and Amon-Ra St. Brown as Detroit’s top 3 WRs.

Lions WR Jameson Williams (ankle) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. He's on track to return for Sunday's Wild Card game vs. the Rams. Williams reeled in 11 of 16 targets for 159 yards over his last three games and has a chance to pick up extra targets this weekend with TE Sam LaPorta out.

Lions HC Dan Campbell said Monday that WR Jameson Williams (ankle, illness) should be "good to go" for this weekend's Wild Card game vs. the Rams. Williams was coming on before missing Week 18, catching 11 of 16 targets for 159 yards over the previous three games. He's taken on even more importance for the Lions offense with TE Sam LaPorta likely out at least this week.

Lions WR Jameson Williams (ankle, illness) is out for Sunday’s game vs. the Vikings. We’ll see if he can make it back for next week’s Wild Card game. Williams’ absence will free up some snaps for WRs Josh Reynolds, Kalif Raymond, and Donovan Peoples-Jones.

Lions WR Jameson Williams set career highs with 7 targets and 4 receptions in Saturday night's win over the Broncos. They produced just 47 yards for a non-descript fantasy outing. But Williams' 72.2% route rate also marked a career high. That continued a positive trend for the second-year wideout since the bye. Williams' rate dipped to 48.7% in Week 14. But before that he had topped 60% in three straight games. His 54.6% coming off the Week 9 bye was also a season high to that point, following rates below 50% in three of his first four appearances this season. Williams now has just one career game with more than 2 receptions and has never put up more than 53 receiving yards in a game. So this isn't enough to make him a Week 16 starter in most fantasy football leagues. But the former 12th overall pick might be cheaply available in dynasty leagues without trade deadlines, given the still-disappointing production vs. his draft capital. Williams will be just 23 when his third NFL season begins.

Lions WR Jameson Williams recorded a deep ball TD in Sunday’s win over Tampa Bay. Williams still saw only 3 targets (6.8%) and ran a total of 9 routes. But his long-range score – which included a nice mid-air adjustment – was a thing of beauty. Call it a step in the right direction for the enigmatic WR. For now, though, his usage isn’t reliable enough for fantasy managers. Detroit catches the Ravens in Week 7.