Wide receiver Jameson Williams said on Thursday night that he didn’t have many conversations with the Lions during the pre-draft process, but it’s clear that the NFC North club had their eyes on him.
The Lions moved from No. 32 all the way up to No. 12 in a trade with the Vikings during the first round in order to take the former Alabama wideout. Williams said that kind of move makes it obvious that the Lions “have faith that we can do big things” and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson confirmed that the team feels the same way.
“We talked about in the springtime, finding somebody on the outside that would dictate coverage,” Johnson said, via Kyle Meinke of MLive.com. “And shoot, I think he checks that box, 100%. I think teams, when he gets healthy, they will realize where he’s at on the field. And that’s what we’re excited about, because that’s gonna do nothing but open up our run game and the opportunity for all of our other skill players. This is a guy that can stretch the field without any sweat. He is electric, he’s got juice. Once he gets healthy, we’re gonna have something to cook with. It’s gonna be fun.”
Williams wound up being the fourth receiver taken and he may have been the first if he had not torn his ACL in the national title game. He’s aiming to be on the field for training camp and making good on that goal would make the Lions’ decision to jump 20 spots to get him look all the better.