LAS VEGAS, NV – APRIL 28: Jameson Williams poses on the red carpet before the 2022 NFL Draft at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino on April 28, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
Lions rookie wide receiver Jameson Williams may not make his NFL debut this week, but he seemed to be running full speed at Wednesday’s practice.
The Detroit Lions started the 21-day return clock for rookie wide receiver Jameson Williams last Monday, Nov. 21. But it was not a normal practice week ahead of the Thanksgiving Day against the Buffalo Bills, and head coach Dan Campbell confirmed it would take a lot for Williams to play Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars off only three normal NFL practices.
The Lions of course began their practice week ahead of Sunday’s home game against Jacksonville on Wednesday. Williams was out on the field, as certainly expected. The questions would be how he looked in his first full speed NFL practice, and how much would even be seen from the day given the short window where the media can watch practice and put observations out to the public.
Thankfully, there is some video of Williams running at practice on Wednesday. He looked pretty good, albeit in a couple very short clips.
Colton Pouncy of The Athletic put it succinctly to tease fans in his tweet video of Williams running.
There’s a small percentage chance Williams shows enough during practices this week for the Lions to activate him, and he plays on Sunday against the Jaguars. He could be added to the active roster and then not play Sunday, but that feels unlikely. If he’s not ready to play this week, even with what will likely be a snap count in the game, he shouldn’t and surely won’t be activated.
So Week 14 at home against the Minnesota Vikings looks more sure to be Williams’ NFL debut, as the three-week window to activate him comes close to ending by then. However ironically, it would be against the team the Lions traded up 20 spots with to get him in the first round of last April’s draft.