Wide receiver Jameson Williams said this week if he was being honest, the grade he'd give himself for the start of his 2026 would be the lowest of his career so far.
He is currently credited with five drops on the season by Pro Football Reference, which is tied with Packers tight end Tucker Kraft for the league lead.
Williams led the NFL last season with 12 of them and said Thursday he's working to combat the issue because he knows a few of them early on this season would have meant game-changing plays for Detroit's offense had he hauled them in.
"Just catching the ball and bringing it in," Williams said. "It's nothing major. It's just drops. I have to catch the ball. That's the main thing.
"My biggest thing is trying to minus those things so I can go just out there and just play free and not worry about dropping the ball. Just focus on doing my job the best I can do it."
Lions assistant head coach and receivers coach Scottie Montgomery has pushed Williams the last couple seasons to get the most out his game. Montgomery sees another level Williams can get to if he can get past some of the drops.
"He's doing some things that we really like to see, but we're talking about greatness," Montgomery said. "We're not just chasing (good). He's a good player. He's a good player in this league. I've told him and you guys have heard, I want to be around the best and I think that he has the opportunity to do that if we do clean up some of the things that you're talking about."
Williams is coming off his best game of the season with six catches for 102 yards in the loss to Carolina. He also had a drop on a deep ball down the right sideline, which he said he lost in the lights, that could have been a huge play in that football game. He had another in the fourth quarter in what ended up being a one-score loss for the Lions. Williams said losing the first one in the lights is no excuse and he still must put his hands in the right spot to still catch the football.
"Every target that he had in that (Carolina) game should have been a catch," Montgomery said of Williams' six catches on eight targets. "If it hits you in the foot, you can catch it. If it hits you in the fingertip, you can catch it. If you jump up and it hits you, you got to catch it. He understands that. Like he understands that point of it, but that is exactly what I'm talking about.
"You can't be boom or bust this league. That is above average or average, when you use the means of them. So, we have to get him to a point, I have to find more ways to get him to the point where he gets to that point and that is a normal play."
Williams has 16 catches for 229 yards on the season and is on pace to set a career-high in catches, but he's averaged just 14.3 yards per reception in 2026 after averaging 16.7 yards over his first four seasons.
Williams seems determined to be more consistent moving forward. That would be big for this offense. We can count on one hand the players in this league with Williams' speed. Unlocking more of those game-changing plays with him will elevate this offense even more.
REMEMBERING MIKE DITKA
NFL Hall of Fame tight end and legendary coach Mike Ditka passed away Friday at the age of 86. Campbell hadn't heard the news yet when asked by a reporter Friday morning about Ditka's passing. He relayed a great story he had of his first meeting with the legendary NFL figure.
"I'm getting drafted to go to the Combine. Well, the Saints want to meet with me, in particular Mike Ditka, right? Tight end, hell of a player, hell of a coach, the whole thing. And so, I'm already like, 'OK'. And I go in, well, I think it's going to - I know he'll be in there … I go in and there's one little light on. It's like a little lamp in the corner. It's at the train station and there's nothing in there. There's no couches.
"The room is totally cleaned out and there's one little table and the room is full of smoke. I mean, you can't hardly even see him. You just see this image off in the corner of this little lamp and smoke everywhere and he's got that big fat cigar. It was one of the best times of my life and most intimidating times of my life sitting across from Mike Ditka. It was awesome though. Just him asking questions about where you grew up, how you think, how you're wired, the game, what you see. It was awesome. And so, thoughts and prayers go out to his family. He's a legend."
TYLEIK WILLIAMS SETTLING IN AT NOSE
Defensive lineman Tyleik Williams made the move from three-technique defensive tackle to playing more inside at the nose tackle in his second season.
"I just embraced it," Williams said of the move inside. "I think I found my spot. I think nose is where I was destined to be anyway. Just got to keep getting better and stacking days."
How has Campbell evaluated Williams' move inside with four games of film to look at?
"Honestly, he's suited to do a little bit of everything. I mean, he can play the three, he can play the one, and he gives us that flexibility," Campbell said Friday. "So does (Alim McNeill) Mac. We like keeping Mac at the three.
"(Williams) is, to be able to get in there and play a G or play a shade or play a zero, he's such a good athlete and he's powerful. He's powerfully strong and he really has a heightened sense of awareness for football. His FBI is way up there. And so, when you combine all those with a guy who's going in his second year and has just taken off, he really took off by the end of the year and he picked up where he left off, had a really good camp and four games in, he is continuing to climb."
The grade Williams said he'd give himself through the first four games would be a B-. He said he's left some plays on the field and could have more impact. Williams is determined to make more of those plays moving forward starting Sunday in Arizona. The future looks very bright for him based on what we've seen over the course of the first four games.
BRANCH/MAYS TIMELINE
Campbell said it would be a 'tall order' for defensive back Brian Branch to play Sunday in Arizona after returning to practice this week after a 10-month rehab for a torn Achilles. He said the same thing about center Cade Mays, who also returned this week from a wrist injury suffered in training camp.
The Lions play in Arizona Sunday against the Cardinals but then have a Week 6 bye that gives both players an extra week to get acclimated and back into football shape. Both plan to stay around the Meijer Performance Center during the bye to continue training.
"Let's get them going Green Bay week. Let's get them going and then we'll assess," Campbell said. "Hopefully by midweek, we'll have a pretty good idea. We'd love to get them ready to go versus Green Bay, I think, right after the bye."
