Detroit Lions Jameson Williams Currently Leads NFL in Drops

Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams has five drops through the first quarter of the 2026 NFL season, tied for the league lead.

Receivers coach Scottie Montgomery has been coaching the former first-round pick tough, and even went so far as to publicly challenge Williams, after he dropped a couple more passes against Carolina Panthers.

The drops were prevalent in the season-opener against the New Orleans Saints. Last year, Williams recorded 12 drops. No other receiver has more drops in the last 21 regular season games (17).

Since Week 1, Williams has seen his productivity steadily increase. Against the Panthers, he secured six receptions for 102 yards.

Speaking with reporters, Williams expressed he tries to play free and move on, if a play is not made.

"Just catching the ball, bringing it in. It’s nothing major, it’s just drops. I just gotta catch the ball," Willams told local reporters. "It’s a long game. With the drops you still can have an excellent game. My biggest thing is trying to minus those things, so I can just go out there and play free, don’t even worry about dropping the ball. Just focus on doing my job the best I could do."

Montgomery expressed this week a player cannot be great in the NFL if they are up and down on a weekly basis.

"In the meeting room, on the field, in walkthrough, he's always on you," Williams said about Detroit's receivers coach. "He never lets you take no days, no plays off. He’s just on us. And that’s what he demands out of us. That’s why our room plays the way we play, because we gotta show how much we respect him and how much he does for us and how grateful we are for having him in our room. He's a great guy, been a great guy to me since he took over the receivers room. I got nothing but love for Scottie."

Offensive coordinator Drew Petzing indicated Williams has rebounded nicely following errors out on the field.

Despite a couple of drops, Jared Goff was still able to connect with Williams on a 49-yard reception in Week 4.

"The first thing I'm going to evaluate is effort, assignment, energy, and intensity. And I think he's doing a really nice job. Those are the controllables, how hard you play? Do you know what you're doing? Are you doing it as fast and as hard as you possibly can? And I think he's been great," said Petzing. "And then the physical stuff, those are little things that I think, 'Hey, you get 10 plays, I'd love to make all 10.' Sometimes you do, sometimes you don't. You can't let it affect your psyche. And I think he's done a nice job of that."

Williams still sees himself as a big part of the offense and continues to play a big role in the run game, as he and Amon-Ra St. Brown block well for Jahmyr Gibbs.

"He's bounced back and made some really big plays for us. I laugh at the in cut that I think he got his hands on. When that ball got thrown, I'm like, most of the league doesn't even touch that ball. So, he's the type of guy who has the ability to go up and get that," said Petzing. "It's a play I expect him to make, he expects to make. But I also, when it went out, I was like, ‘Woah.’ So, you’ve got to live with a little bit of that. He wants to be challenged in that area, but I do.

"I'm pleased with where he is at and I'm always going to say, 'Hey, can you give us more? Can you make more plays? Can you have a bigger role?' And I think he wants that.”

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