Getty Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams had an embarrassing drop in the preseason opener against the New York Giants.
Fans have been critical of Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams’ hands. That won’t change after Week 1 of the 2023 NFL preseason.
During the first quarter against the New York Giants, Williams had a chance to haul in a 30-plus yard reception.
On the play, Williams beat New York rookie cornerback Deonte Banks by a small step, and Lions quarterback Nate Sudfield hit Williams perfectly in the hands. The catch would have moved the Lions at least inside the Giants 10-yard line.
There was just one problem. Williams didn’t make the catch.
It’s just one play in a preseason game. But after the offseason Williams has experienced, Lions fans in attendance weren’t pleased to see the 2022 first-round pick drop the long pass.
Now Jameson Williams drops one and the crowd is not loving it.
Lions fans, along with NFL pundits, on social media weren’t pleased either.
Rough drop by Jameson Williams.
Too early to call him a bust?
That is a tough drop by #Lions Jameson Williams, I’m sure he’ll recover… Rough start to the preseason though
Jameson Williams has to hold onto this…had Banks beat when the pass arrived but the second year WR could not haul it in
Dan Campbell cleaning out Jameson Williams locker
Jameson Williams with a badddd drop
Jameson Williams is concerning.
Wrong routes, drops, etc.
What is he doing
Jameson Williams just dropped a freebie. Butterfingers
Jameson Williams was drafted ahead of Jahan Dotson.
Williams caught a pass a couple plays later. He also had a reception during the second quarter.
Williams finished the first half with 2 receptions for 18 yards on 6 targets.
Rocky Summer for WR Jameson Williams Continues in 2023 Preseason Debut
One regular season play doesn’t define a player, let alone a preseason play. But social media reacted the way it did to the drop because it was Williams dropping the ball.
The second-year wideout has been a lightning rod for controversy this offseason.
His rocky offseason began when he liked a tweet that suggested Detroit should replace signal caller Jared Goff with Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson on March 7. Then in April, the NFL suspended Williams for the first six games of the 2023 regular season because of a gambling violation.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Williams made his gambling suspension look worse when he posted a video of himself at a boxing match in Las Vegas on Instagram Live less than a day after receiving his suspension.
But arguably his biggest offseason blunder came in early July. For the Fourth of July, Williams posted a video of himself lighting fireworks. Detroit sports commentators, including 97.1 The Ticket’s Mike Valenti heavily criticized Williams for his decision play with explosives and for showing the video on social media.
Williams didn’t exactly come into the league under the radar either. The Lions traded up the draft board 20 spots to grab him in the 2022 NFL draft. Detroit made that trade despite the fact Williams suffered a torn ACL in his final college football game, which was under four months before the draft.
Due to the injury, Williams didn’t make his NFL debut until Week 13. When he returned, he wasn’t heavily involved in the offense.
Williams finished the 2022 season with only 1 catch on 9 targets. However, his lone reception was a 41-yard touchdown.
Two Targets to Williams on Friday Ended in Interceptions
Williams doesn’t have anyone but himself to blame for the first-quarter drop that he received heavy criticism for on Twitter. But the rest of the first half, poor quarterback play plagued his stat line.
Lions backup quarterback Nate Sudfield struggled with accuracy, completing only 12 of his 23 attempts in the first half.
Williams’ six targets led the Lions through the first two quarters. But that may have been a bad thing. At times, Sudfield appeared to be forcing the ball in Williams’ direction too often. Two of Williams’ targets led to interceptions.
I feel like things are setting up for an over-reaction of disappointment in Jameson Williams tonight. @kmeinke and @BenjaminSRaven kind of touched on it in their pod this week but Jamo isn’t being helped out by backup QB play in practice. Teddy will be important for his reps.
Williams Atones for Drop With Impressive Two-Point Conversion Reception
Good or bad, Twitter will always have overreactions early in the preseason.
While Williams didn’t light up the stat sheet in the third quarter, he made up for the early drop with an terrific catch on a two-point conversion attempt.
The play led to a much different social media reaction than his drop in the first half.
Jameson Williams makes a catch and is now good again.
Stay tuned for the next play where we will find out if he’s once again a bust.
WHAT A CATCH BY JAMESON WILLIAMS…..
THAT WAS THE STRAIGHT DEFINITION OF FIRE…..
ONE HANDED OVER THE SHOULDER FOR THE 2 PT CONVERSION!!!!