There might be some who are concerned about the wide receiver position for the Detroit Lions while Jameson Williams is suspended, but Louis Riddick is not one of them.
ESPN analyst Louis Riddick has been consistently bullish on the direction the Detroit Lions are going in. That being said, if there was something to critique it’s fair to say he would call it out.
With Jameson Williams suspended for the first six games of the 2023 season after violating the NFL’s gambling policy, there is some concern out there about how the Lions will manage around his absence. Hopes were high for Williams moving toward his second season, and now those hopes have to at least partially be squashed.
With a long-term need at wide receiver, the Lions waited until the seventh round to draft a wide receiver (Antoine Green). That is where some of the concern lies. Some may lament the loss of DJ Chark in free agency, due to how good the offense looked late last season when he was healthy.
Louis Riddick not concerned about Lions wide receivers during Jameson Williams’ suspension
Riddick was on “The Rich Eisen Show” earlier this week. He talked Lions, and dismissed any concern about how they’ll do in terms of getting what they need at wide receiver while Williams is unavailable.
"At wide receiver, I understand that now you’re gonna have some issues with depth, at least for the beginning of the season with Jameson Williams’ situation,” “But Marvin Jones, Josh Reynolds, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Kalif Raymond, these guys, they can hold it down. They’ll be just fine.”"
After St. Brown, “fine” is one way to describe the Lions’ wide receiver room absent Williams, and perhaps even with the second-year man if he was not suspended. Reynolds, Jones and Raymond are solid players, so it’s no knock to them.
But it’s been shown how quarterback Jared Goff needs more than “fine” around him to succeed at his highest level. So even as others (Sam LaPorta, Jahmyr Gibbs) are lined up for big roles, there’s a bit of a void at wide receiver in Detroit.