Jameson Williams Reveals Where First Touchdown Football Is
The Detroit Lions’ offense has been performing like a well-oiled machine the last five weeks.
During the aforementioned stretch, the Lions have averaged 32.2 points per game, and in four of the five contests, the team has scored at least 31 points.
Yet, not everything has been perfect on the offensive side of the ball over the last five games.
Specifically, the team’s run game has failed to keep up with the high-level play of its passing game, spearheaded by the resurgence of quarterback Jared Goff.
In fact, in the past three weeks, Detroit has produced a total of just 330 yards on the ground, equating to 110 rushing yards a contest.
This comes after the Lions accumulated no less than 139 total rushing yards, and ran for 164 yards per contest in each of their first four games.
No matter how you slice it, it’s time for Detroit to get back on track on the ground, and it’s been a point of emphasis for Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson going into the team’s matchup with the N.Y. Jets Sunday.
“Our gameplan always starts with the run game, and so, sure, it’s been disappointing. I know the numbers haven’t been there,” Johnson said Thursday, about the recent struggles of the run game. “Early in the season, we were getting some of those 50-yard runs that kind of, I do think, skewed the average just a little bit. But, overall, we were probably a little bit more efficient last game. And, I think (head) coach (Dan Campbell) alluded to it, that’s probably the least efficient runs we’ve had as a whole, when you look at the percentages. So, (it’s) something we’re conscious of."
A week ago against the Minnesota Vikings, Detroit rushed a total of 30 times for 134 yards and a score, good for an average of 4.5 yards per carry.
On the surface, those numbers don't look so bad. However, they're a bit misleading. The reason why: Forty-two of those yards came on the fake punt designed for C.J. Moore in the third quarter.
If you take away the run from Moore, the Lions collectively accumulated just 92 yards on the ground in their Week 14 tilt with Minnesota.
Additionally, Jamaal Williams and D'Andre Swift, Detroit's top two backs, rushed for a combined 58 yards, on 22 carries, in the contest. That comes out to a dismal 2.6 yards per rushing attempt.
Johnson, in the meantime, has been busy examining the potential reasons why the team's productivity on the ground has dipped.
“I think (the) last few weeks, it’s a number of things, when you look at the few games, offensive line, it might just be aiming points or angles, targeting is always a big thing. Receivers, at times, just making sure they’re taking care of their force responsibilities, and then making sure our running backs are seeing the holes properly," Johnson expressed. "Each play’s got an intent to it, and the more we meet together, and we’re all aligned, I think the vision comes together. So, (at the) end of the day, we’ve been able to move the ball and score points on offense. So, certainly, (the run game is) an area for us to improve, though.”
Johnson and Goff Continuing to Build Solid Chemistry
While the run game has experienced its fair share of struggles in recent weeks, Goff is playing some of the best football of his NFL career.
The seventh-year passer has thrown for at least 330 yards two weeks in a row, and hasn’t committed a single turnover the last five weeks.
Additionally, he’s already thrown for more touchdowns (22) and yards (3,352) than he did a season ago (19 TDs and 3,245 yards in 14 games).
And, for the 2022 campaign, Goff has produced a QBR of 61.1, which ranks sixth among all qualified quarterbacks.
As the veteran signal-caller has continued to perform at a high level, his rapport with Johnson has simultaneously kept growing.
“Our relationship has grown as the season has gone along,” Johnson said. “We meet every day after the game, we watch the game together, we go back and forth, how I see it, how he sees it. So, we’re very much aligned, we’re as much aligned now as we’ve been all season. So, I think that helps him play and do his job where, ‘Okay, you’re calling this here. Here’s where I can be more aggressive, here’s where I just need to find a completion.’
“I mean, shoot, he’s done it a number of times the past few games, where I get a little bit too aggressive and the play isn’t there down the field and he’ll just burn it at a receiver’s feet and save the play that way. Not take a sack, not force something, and so, he’s doing a really good job with that, and it allows me as a play-caller to call, shoot, almost anything on the call sheet. I’m not worried about a negative play happening, because I trust that he’s going to be able to do something positive with it for the most part.”
Jameson Williams Keeping First TD Ball at House
One career catch. One touchdown reception.
That’s exactly how the stat line reads for Lions rookie receiver Jameson Williams, the No. 12 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
In Detroit’s Week 14 contest with the Vikings, the Alabama product scored the touchdown on a 41-yard bomb from Goff.
And, where is that touchdown ball today?
"I ain't gonna lie. The ball, it's at my house right now. It's in my bed," Williams told reporters Thursday.
