It's been wheels all the way up for Jameson Williams so far in training camp

At the outset of open to the media OTA practices back in May, Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell wasted no time to praise the work Jameson Williams had done. Unencumbered by an injury or the cloud of a gambling suspension, the third-year wide receiver needed to carry that momentum into (and right through) training camp to fully set the stage for a breakout season.

By all accounts on the ground at Allen Park thus far, Williams is off to a very nice start at camp. Looking good in drills, chirping at defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn and "routinely" having his way with an improved Lions' secondary, there has been a noticeable difference in Williams.

Monday represented a ramp up at Lions camp-the first day in pads. Before the day's practice session, Campbell talked glowingly about Williams again (via SI.com).

"This is the most confident that I've seen him since he's been here," Campbell said. "He came in with the right mindset when we started this offseason and that has not waned one bit. He is in a good place. He's taking the coaching, he's trying to work on it, he's improving and he's making plays. So we like where he's at mentally and emotionally."

Jameson Williams looks and sounds more comfortable than he has ever been

Williams talked to reporters after Monday's practice. He looks and sounds comfortable, if nothing else, and upon being asked precisely about what looks to be an increased comfort level he confirmed that. He then echoed Campbell's initial OTA message about him being a "man on a mission."

"In the offseason in OTAs I came back on a mission," Williams said after practice Monday. "My mission was just to be the best player I could be and get back to where I was before the injury...

Williams then got down to brassier tacks: making plays, his effort to bringing energy and looking forward to the start of the regular season.

"I'm really excited, man. We have a game coming up in a month or so and I'm just ready to go out there and showcase as a team what we can do and what we've been working on every day."

The Lions coveted Williams enough to trade up 20 spots to get him in the first round of the 2022 draft, even though he was coming off a torn ACL in the national title game months earlier. Then last year came, with the gambling suspension and an injury during training camp to derail things.

The third year just might be the charm for Williams, as everything comes together in ways it just hasn't been able to before. Five practices into training camp as of Monday afternoon, so far, so good.