ALLEN PARK — Jameson Williams should play a larger role in the Detroit Lions offense. In the win over Tampa Bay, before the bye week, the wide receiver was targeted twice but had no catches.
Actually he had one for 14 yards but it was negated by a questionable offensive pass interference penalty.
Scottie Montgomery, assistant head coach/wide receivers coach, called it a “great back shoulder catch” but then zipped his lips to prevent paying a penalty.
The way Williams handled it, showed his growing maturity level.
“I thought that was really going to frustrate him – it’s frustrating but it didn’t frustrate him to the point where he didn’t come back and have questions about what was going on and what we saw,’’ Montgomery said. “We have to get to the point where we’re not talking about potential we’re talking about more production and we’ll get there.’’
So far in seven games, Williams has 17 catches for 289 yards and two touchdowns.
The week before the Bucs’ win, in a loss at Kansas City, Williams had six catches on seven targets for 66 yards and a touchdown.
His most productive game yard-wise this season was two receptions for 108 yards and a touchdown in a win over Chicago.
“We want to win the game, we want to score points and I think that’s the primary for everybody. But of course, yeah, we’d love to get (Williams) involved more, get him to rock in a million different ways,’’ quarterback Jared Goff said. “And he’s explosive – I know defenses are worried about him at all times and we need to find ways to continue to keep him involved.”
During the bye week, the coaches were studying film on how to get the most out of each player.
“It’s just one of those situations – it’s one of the things I studied where (Williams) is in the progression, what happens when he is first, second, third in the progression,’’ Montgomery said.
“It’s kinda been all over the place. Either the progression started and he’s open behind the first progression or he’s the second progression and we don’t quite connect. Or we do everything right — the O-line everything is right and we don’t make the play down the field’’
Montgomery said it’s a combination of all those things. They’re working to get Williams more opportunities.
It’s a process and it doesn’t start during game week.
“It starts the moment that you walk into a room as a coach, you’ve got certain standards for guys, you also have to create a level of understanding that is selfless but you also have to have a bit of a selfish nature to you,’’ Montgomery said. “Because receiver is one of the only jobs where everybody else has to do their job almost perfectly for you to get the opportunity and because you’re the punctuation mark or you’re the period or the question mark or the exclamation mark — right there to finish the sentence you have to have a different level of confidence to be able to finish drives, to finish plays, and finish with the ball in the end zone. It’s something we started a long time ago.’’
UP NEXT: Vikings (3-4) at Lions (5-2), 1 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 2 at Ford Field.
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