Second-year wide receiver Jameson Williams of the Detroit Lions is in hot water over a viral video from a Fourth of July celebration. In response, Detroit sports radio host Mike Valenti of 97.1 The Ticket didn’t pull any punches.
Valenti was critical of Williams’ decision to light explosives on July 4. But the biggest takeaway point Valenti made in his rant over the Lions receiver wasn’t necessarily for Williams to stop living his life.
Rather, Valenti argued for Williams to stop putting so much of his life on social media.
“All I’ve asked is, please, do yourself a favor, disappear,” Valenti said on July 5. “Get off the socials, go to work.”
This is not the first time Williams has come under scrutiny for something he posted on social media this offseason. On March 7, the second-year receiver liked a tweet that suggested the Lions replace quarterback Jared Goff with Baltimore Ravens signal caller Lamar Jackson.
In late April, less than a day after receiving his six-game suspension from the NFL for gambling violations, Williams posted a video of himself at a boxing match in Las Vegas on his Instagram Live.
Mike Valenti Calls for Jameson Williams to be More Like Amon-Ra St. Brown
Former All-Pro wide receiver Calvin Johnson made it clear during an appearance on 97.1 The Ticket on June 9 that he looked forward to being a mentor to Williams. Valenti, though, argued that Williams doesn’t have to look beyond his own receiver room for guidance.
Valenti asserted that Williams should strive to be more like the Lions current top receiver, Amon-Ra St. Brown.
“Amon-Ra [St. Brown] is one of my favorite Lions,” Valenti said. “Beyond the fact that he’s awesome, hard-nosed and got a chip on his shoulder, he’s all business. He just goes to work.
“There’s no need for social media, does his work in silence.”
St. Brown is roughly a year and a half older than Williams. St. Brown also only has one extra year of NFL experience.
But it’s hard to disagree with Valenti’s assessment that the Lions could benefit from, not just Williams, but all of their players following St. Brown’s lead from a work ethic perspective.
St. Brown caught 90 passes for 912 yards as a rookie in 2021 after being a fourth-round pick. Last season, he made his first Pro Bowl, recording 106 receptions, 1,161 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns.
Jameson Williams Facing Controversy Over Fireworks Video
It’s quite possible that Williams could benefit from less activity on his social media accounts. Of course, one could also argue that if a player is going to receive criticism for sharing an activity on social media, then it’s not an activity worth doing.
Valenti argued that Williams should not be playing with fireworks even if he hadn’t posted the video on social media.
“If you’re an NFL player in a prove-it stage in your career, I don’t care if you’re Jamo or Jared Goff or anybody in between, I don’t want to see my players, two weeks before camp, lighting fireworks,” Valenti said. “That’s full-stop.”
Valenti also made it clear that he’s not trying to unfairly criticism Williams because he’s been a media target due to his social media activity and suspension this offseason.
“And before you hit me with America and freedom and 4th of July, I approach this with a bias. My own team had a borderline franchise player blow off a large portion of his right hand lighting fireworks: Jason Pierre-Paul,” Valenti said. “I don’t get why any adult is out there lighting hand cannons in the back yard. They’re dangerous, they’re stupid, it just doesn’t make any sense.
“But when you’re Jamo, if it’s stupid for a regular person to do it, it’s really stupid for you to do it. You make your living with your hands, man.”
Former New York Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul had his right index finger amputated because of a fireworks accident on July 4, 2015. Pierre-Paul has played the rest of his career with a padded club on his hand.
Since the injury, he has recorded five seasons with at least 7 sacks. But the padded club has also negatively impacted his play, especially in the season after the accident.
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Lions WR Jameson Williams Receives Harsh Message Over Fireworks Controversy