Week 1 of the 2026 season was a game Jameson Williams likely wants to put behind him.
He dropped a would-be touchdown on a deep ball from quarterback Jared Goff, bobbled an end-around that would have gone for a huge play and failed to haul in multiple other passes that he’s caught before.
“I don't think it was too good,” Williams said of his performance in the Lions’ 31-30 win over the New Orleans Saints. “We won though, so that's good.”
“I just didn't capitalize as much as I know I can.”
Williams is in a good position to capitalize in Detroit’s Thursday Night Football game against the Buffalo Bills. For as many problems as the Lions’ own defense might have, they’re going up against a Buffalo defense that also struggled in Week 1.
Williams can take advantage of weaker Bills defense in Week 2
The Bills allowed the eighth-highest explosive play rate in the NFL Week 1 in their 36-31 win over the Houston Texans. Top outside Christian Benford had a rough day. Beyond star wideout Nico Collins, there aren’t many premier weapons on Houston’s offense– at least not compared to the group Detroit can boast.
We might be in for a high-scoring game where whoever makes the most big plays wins. Good to have a player like Williams on your side in that situation.
Williams’ speed is a big part of what makes the Lions’ offense go. He presents the threat of a deep ball over the top at any moment, and it forces defenses to keep their safeties deep so Williams can’t get behind them so easily.
This, in turn, opens up running lanes for Jahmyr Gibbs, and space in the middle of the field for Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta to settle down and chew up yards after the catch.
But Detroit just gave Gibbs the ball a career-high 34 times, and it’s a short week. It would be wise to not continue to overwhelm him this early in the season given the poor depth behind him in the backfield.
Gibbs will get his, no doubt, but Detroit needs some explosive plays if it wants to keep up with Josh Allen and company all night. That’s where Williams could really do damage with a bounceback performance.
Williams came into the season with considerable hype after a training camp where he looked more dynamic than ever and continued to water his route tree. He was a prime candidate to build on consecutive 1,000 yard receiving seasons with his best year yet.
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And for all of his Week 1 struggles, he still caught four passes for 45 yards, including a 22-yard grab in overtime that set St. Brown up for the winning score. If that’s what a bad game looks like for him, it speaks volumes to the player he has become.
Goff wasn’t too worried about his speedy teammate after the Saints game. He said “of course” he thought Williams would have better days going forward, and blamed his own ball placement for some of the missed connections.
“I'm not worried about him in the slightest,” Goff said. “I gotta be a little bit better for him too. But so proud of him late in the game. Game's on the line, I find him down the sideline and he makes the play, and that was the difference.”
The sharpness of Goff and Williams’ connection Thursday night could be one of the things that defines this game. The Lions absolutely need big plays to put pressure on Buffalo, and Williams may well be the one to deliver.
“We’re treating it as a regular game,” he said of the matchup. “It's primetime. We’re just trying to go out, get a win, focus on being 2-0.”
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