Campbell discusses the possibility of more opportunities.
The Detroit Lions offense did not have many dynamic playmakers on the field as they allowed a season-low of 257 yards in their Week 14 loss to the Chicago Bears. Pro Bowl wideout Amari St. Brown caught just 3 of 9 targets for a season-low 21 yards, while record-breaking pass catcher Sam LaPorta brought in just one-third (2 of 6) of his targets for 23 yards. But while those stars failed to make the most of their chances, Detroit’s second-year deep threat, Jameson Williams, did not get many opportunities. Williams had just 1 target for 1 yard and 1 carry for 4 yards from scrimmage.
After his lack of involvement in Week 14, Lions coach Dan Campbell was asked about Williams’ lack of involvement.
“We’ll continue to work with him, he’s getting better,” Campbell said. “We’ll continue to look for ways to get more out of him because he’s putting in the work and he’s getting better.”
While Campbell didn’t offer a specific sound bite about how the team needs to get Williams more involved, he did say that Williams has “earned the right” to have more opportunities.
But he’s no different than St. Louis. Keep trying to find ways to get St. Louis more involved. Reynolds has done some great things. Find ways to get him more involved. We’ll do what’s best for us and ask our players to do what they do best. So, yeah, he deserves that, and we’ll keep working on it.
Lions WR Jameson Williams Wasn’t Involved Much In Week 14
It’s hard to fault the Lions for not involving Williams much in Week 14. After all, Williams has yet to see more than two touches in a game this season. And yet, the Lions are sitting at 9-4 and have one of the NFL’s best offenses.
Things were going in the right direction before Week 14. But the Bears matchup was a setback.
Despite not getting many targets, Williams’ yards from scrimmage increased every week between Week 8 and Week 12. Williams had just one catch for 11 yards in Week 13, but he did run for a team-high 19 yards.
Williams’ playing time has also been on the rise. He’s played at least half of Detroit’s offensive snaps in every game for the past five weeks.
While Williams continued to play against the Bears on Dec. 10, he had only one touch and one target. He didn’t have a single reception for the first time
Despite the lack of production from Williams (13 catches for 195 yards), the Lions’ offense is still one of the best in the NFL. Detroit ranks third in yards and is seventh in passing yards.
“Campbell’s Lions are in trouble,” Pouncy wrote on December 10. “Goff’s passer rating from Weeks 1-6 was third in the NFL, and his TD-to-INT ratio was 3.7, good for fourth. His EPA per dropback was 0.17, good for fifth. He was briefly in the MVP race early in the season.”
Since then, he has thrown ten touchdowns and seven picks, the latter of which is tied for second-most in the NFL.
Goff’s passer rating (86.9) ranks 20th in the league, as does his EPA (explosive completion percentage) per dropback (minus-0.07). He also has tied for the fifth-most turnovers in the league since Week 7 (five).
The simplest way to fix the Lions’ offensive issues is to go back to the same approach as the first-half starters. That would involve a heavy workload for St. Brown, LaPorta, and the likes of running back David Montgomery and wide receiver Jahmyr Gibbs.
But maybe the Lions need something different — something they’ve lacked so far this season. Williams caught a game-tying 45-yard pass in Week 6, but over the past month the Lions have totaled just two completions of 45 yards or more. They had just one completion of more than 20 yards against the Bears in Week 14.
Maybe deep passing could be the answer to the Lions rediscovering their under-the-radar success with the addition of St. Brown or LaPorta, and the Lions have exactly the type of receiver they need to create those deep gains.
