Lions OC feels he 'failed' WR Williams, eyes fixes

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Detroit Lions violative coordinator John Morton says helium has "failed" Jameson Williams successful presumption of getting the wide receiver progressive capable successful the team's prolific offense.

Williams went catchless for the archetypal clip each play during the Lions' 24-9 triumph implicit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers connected Oct. 20 portion being targeted conscionable doubly by backmost Jared Goff. For the season, Williams has 17 receptions for 289 yards and 2 touchdowns but has eclipsed 45 yards successful lone 2 games portion playing alongside truthful galore violative weapons.

"I looked astatine everything, arsenic acold arsenic that. I'm going to bash a amended occupation with that. But determination has been opportunities wherever it conscionable didn't happen," said Morton, who is successful his archetypal twelvemonth arsenic the Lions' violative coordinator. "It's not similar we aren't going to effort to people him. So that was the biggest thing.

"So I looked astatine everything, and I failed him. That's what I told him," Morton added. "I person to bash a amended occupation with that. But it's a two-way street. We decidedly looked astatine that."

Morton met with Williams privately during the Lions' bye week and intimately examined immoderate of those missed opportunities. The coaching unit is besides moving to effort to get Williams much open, peculiarly connected 3rd down, arsenic helium is present facing double-teams, alongside wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Williams refused to marque a large woody of the constricted touches earlier this season.

"I don't person thing to accidental really. It's not thing to accidental astir it. It's truly similar we conscionable go, we win. It is what it is, we win," Williams told reporters Oct. 9. "That's it. I don't truly privation to accidental excessively overmuch oregon talk connected it."

Morton has been impressed with Williams' professionalism. The program is to beryllium much originative with playcalling portion strengthening the transportation betwixt Williams and Goff.

"He doesn't accidental anything. He conscionable goes and plays. Like I said, 'I wouldn't responsibility you if you were pissed astatine me,' due to the fact that I've coached that position, I've played that position," Morton said. "And I cognize helium works excessively hard. But we've got to marque definite that we're going retired and doing the close thing, the close techniques and this and that. It's not conscionable him. It's everybody."

In 2024, Williams surpassed 1,000 receiving yards for the archetypal clip of his vocation and signed a three-year hold worthy up to $83 cardinal successful September.

The Lions discourtesy knows it volition request Williams astatine his champion arsenic Detroit begins the backmost fractional of the play against pugnacious competition.

"We privation to triumph the game, we privation to people points, and I deliberation that's the superior for everybody," Goff said aft Tuesday's practice. "But of course, yeah, we'd emotion to get him progressive more, get him to stone successful a cardinal antithetic ways. And he's explosive. I cognize defenses are disquieted astir him astatine each times, and we request to find ways to proceed to support him involved."