It's obvious, but absolutely true. The Detroit Lions need to add help at cornerback this offseason, it's just a matter of how it looks. Players who new defensive backs coach Deshea Townsend has history with stand to make some sense, in a broad sense.
On Tuesday morning, Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report was first to report the Jacksonville Jaguars will release cornerback Darious Williams. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN have followed with confirmations. Fowler added that "teams are checking on him."
One of those teams checking on Williams seems sure to be the Lions. Townsend was the Jaguars' cornerbacks coach for the last two seasons, overlapping exactly with Williams there.
Originally an undrafted free agent with the Baltimore Ravens in 2018, Williams was placed on waivers and landed with the Los Angeles Rams during that season. He eventually established himself as a starter there (23 starts over the 2020 and 2021 seasons), and he was part of the Rams' Super Bowl championship team. That helped him land a nice three-year contract with the Jaguars in 2022, but with little guaranteed money left for 2024 Jacksonville will let him go and clear a big chunk of cap space.
Potential ideal cornerback fit has landed right in the Detroit Lions' lap
Jacksonville is not releasing Williams because of his performance. He is coming off the best season of his career in 2023, with four interceptions, 19 pass breakups, a 63.9 passer rating allowed and an overall Pro Football Focus grade of 75.9.
Williams has ties to the Lions beyond Townsend. When the Rams claimed him off waivers from the Ravens in 2018, assistant general manager Ray Agnew was the Rams' director of pro personnel. General manager Brad Holmes was also of course the Rams' director of college scouting then, and as a self-proclaimed connoisseur of cornerback play he surely had a little familiarity with Williams from the 2018 draft process.
Williams will turn 31 on March 15, so he's on the older side. But that also means he won't be all that expensive, and a "piece of the equation" rather than a move for a top-tier corner. But assuming Townsend would endorse him, Williams might be a Lion in short order.