Lions’ Dan Campbell tempers expectations as Jameson Williams returns

ALLEN PARK — Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams is back to work this week after his six-game NFL game suspension was shortened to four weeks.

Williams, a first-round pick in 2022, was limited to six games last season due to injury and finished with nine targets, and one amazing 41-yard reception for a touchdown. He ran a reverse 40 yards against the Bears. That’s it.

Coach Dan Campbell is not looking to make up for lost time with Williams who played in one preseason game with seven targets and two catches for 36 yards in August. He struggled with catching the ball during much of training camp and injured his hamstring in an Aug. 17 practice which sidelined him until his suspension started.

The way Campbell operates, once players get on the field, a first-round pick and undrafted player have the same chance to succeed. That won’t change with Williams. Campbell’s expectations seem basic.

“Reliability, dependability, get lined up, know where you’re supposed to be, we’re going to get the depth out of you, we can count on you to be where you’re supposed to be when you’re supposed to be there and that’s it,’’ Campbell said on Monday. 

“I’m not looking for yards, I’m not looking for explosives, not looking for touchdowns, just be a reliable receiver like any of those guys in the room. That’s it. To me that’s a good year. Because we’re about winning it’s not about one player that will help us win.’’

Monday was Williams’ first day back. Tuesday the team will have a full practice in preparation to play the Carolina Panthers at Ford Field on Sunday.

“We’ve just got to see where he’s at with football. This will be his first week back, we’ll take every day and see how he does,’’ Campbell said.

No guarantee on how much he will play or even if he will play Sunday. Depends on practice this week.

“He just needs to come in, I’m not worried about him working, he will. It’s just about polishing all the little things. We also know if he does play, he can’t play 60 plays, that’s not smart, we can’t do that to him,’’ Campbell said. “So we’ll see where it goes, it’s all about improvement, no different than the rest of the team. Every week we’ve just got to get a little bit better. He needs to get a little bit better and we’ll take it from there.’’

So far with the Lions 3-1 record, the offense is sailing without Williams. Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown leads with 26 catches for 331 yards and two touchdowns, while rookie tight end Sam LaPorta has 22 catches for 242 yards and a TD. Josh Reynolds had broken through with a dozen receptions for 215 yards and two touchdowns.

It’s not like Williams has really been missed. His speed makes him a natural downfield target but he’s not the only one on the roster with that ability. 

“I think what we’ve done a really good job of in these four weeks, we are by committee, we have production. It’s taken all of us,’’ Campbell said. “That O-line is important and our skill guys (are) stepping up, that’s from tight ends to backs to receivers.’’

From Campbell’s perspective everyone has a job to do and those who find success will find the ball coming their way more often.

“Your number will be called at a certain time, we’re not one guy’s carrying a load, that’s not how we work. Certainly we have players that we depend on on that side of the ball that have come up big for us, you know who they are,’’ the coach added.

Detroit Lions prove that grit, belief and hunger is winning combination

Campbell: We’re still the hunters, not the hunted

Grit may be the motto, but believing is a major reason the Detroit Lions have jumped out to a 3-1 start.

“I don’t care how talented you are, if you don’t believe you can win games and you don’t believe the coaches can put you in position to win games or you don’t believe the guy next to you is going to do his job, it doesn’t matter. You’ll struggle to win and you’ll always have doubt,’’ coach Dan Campbell said on Friday, the day after the Lions crushed the Packers, 34-20, at Green Bay.

“This team believes, this staff believes. We know we can go into any and every game and we’re going to have a chance to win it as long as we don’t shoot ourselves in the foot,’’ Campbell added.

For starters, they dominate on the offensive and defensive lines. They’re getting contributions across the board including from rookies. Are they perfect? Absolutely not.

“Something else we’re doing well right now, we’re making some errors, but we’re able to overcome those right now and that’s a sign of a good team,’’ Campbell said. “You win back-to-back wins, you can overcome some of your own errors, you can win on the road, those are signs of a good team.’’

All seems to be going well for Campbell’s bunch and another big reason is that he wants violent, physical play and he’s getting it.

The Lions will open as favorites against Carolina on Oct. 8 and it looks like it could continue that way down the stretch. They may have invisible targets on their jerseys but Campbell doesn’t see it that way.

“Our focus has still got to be we’re not hunted, we’re still on the hunt. I said this back in training camp, if you’re hunting us you don’t have to look far, we’ll be on your front porch when you open the door,’’ Campbell said.

After the 34-20 win at Green Bay on Thursday night, the Lions are alone atop the NFC North at 3-1.

“We still have a lot to prove. We want to win this division, we’ve done nothing yet. We’re on course, we like where we’re at. We’re still hungry, we have to approach every game that way no different than last night,’’ the coach said.

He was asked when he’ll be able to let himself dream about how good this team can be.

“I’m not going there. We’ve got our standards and we have our own goals, it started that way it’s always going to be the focus,’’ Campbell said. “You have to look at each game individually.’’

Campbell is more a hunter than a dreamer. That’s exactly what he needs to see from his team for the next 13 games.

UP NEXT: Carolina Panthers (0-3) at Lions (3-1), 1 p.m. on Oct. 8 at Ford Field.)

Five reasons the red-hot Lions beat the Packers, 34-20, at Green Bay

With another big prime-time win, the Detroit Lions take over first place in the NFC North. Detroit rolled out to a big start in the first half and then held on in the second half to defeat the Packers, 34-20,  at Green Bay on Thursday night.

The Lions (3-1) sit atop the division alone. The Packers fall to 2-2 while the Bears and Vikings are winless.

“You’ve got to win your division games and, man, if you can get them on the road that goes a long way,’’ coach Dan Campbell said. “We knew that and this is important, it’s not the end-all be-all but it is important.’’

It was Lions’  fourth straight win over the Packers. 

“Our defense continues to play well. I thought they were a force today. We talked about having energy and intensity and be able to deliver in the tough moments. I thought we did that,’’ Campbell said.

“Offensively we were able to move the football, we ran it well. We had a couple shaky spots but we closed that game out with the offense and special teams continues to play well for us,’’ the coach added.

The red-hot bunch, which has won in prime time at Lambeau and Arrowhead, has won 11 of their last 14 games.

“I’m really happy with where we’re at. I’m proud of the guys, the staff, everybody,’’ Campbell said. “That was outstanding to be able to snap back on a short week with that kind of performance. We were really good.’’

Five reasons the Lions won:

1. Detroit’s pass rush picked up where it left off in the win over the Falcons when they had 7 sacks. On two of his first four snaps, quarterback Jordan Love was sacked. It did not end there. He was sacked five times and pressured often. He rebounded a bit in the second half, but not enough. Cornerback Jerry Jacobs had his second interception with four minutes left in the game which pretty much sealed the win. He is the first Lions CB to have two INTs at Green Bay since CB Dick LeBeau on Sept. 29, 1968. “That’s what we all expected from Jerry,” Campbell said.

2. After throwing an interception on his third snap, quarterback Jared Goff shook it off and led the offense to 284 first-half yards and 401 yards total. Goff has said it’s not the big plays that make all the difference, it’s how he bounces back from a bad play. That’s exactly what he did. When the Packers were getting close in the fourth quarter, Goff led the touchdown drive. He finished completing 19 of 28 for 210 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

3. Rookie tight end Sam LaPorta just keeps getting better. His 35-yard catch on third-and-5 in the first, set up the Lions’ first touchdown. He finished with four catches for 56 yards. He also has the most receiving yards and receptions through an NFL tight end’s first four career games.

4. The Lions were able to stop the run, holding the Packers to 27 rushing yards. “It’s always important that you make a team one-dimensional, but we felt like they were going to come out and take some shots early and they did,’’ Campbell said. “They tried to throw it a little bit and see if they could make some hay on the back end. They weren’t able to necessarily do that. … It was an outstanding defensive performance.’’ Quarterback Jordan Love had a tough night. He might have a bright future, but he’s no Aaron Rodgers at this point. Love was 23 of 36 for 246 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.

5. On the other side, running back David Montgomery’s return sparked the Lions 211-yard run game. He scored two first-half touchdowns and added another in the fourth. Montgomery finished with 32 carries for 121 yards. He is the first Lions player to rush for 100-plus yards and three TDs in a game since RB James Stewart did so on Oct. 19, 2000. Rookie Jahmyr Gibbs had 8 carries for 40 yards.

BONUS: Lions fans travel well and they was plenty of Honolulu blue in the crowd at Lambeau. Campbell said he could particularly hear them late in the third and early in the fourth. “It’s awesome. You feel like there’s a little piece of home no matter where you go,’’ Campbell said.

NEXT UP: Panthers (0-3) at Lions (3-1), 1 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 8, at Ford Field.