Jameson Williams Adds Different Dynamic to Detroit Lions Offense

Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams wasn't even supposed to be on the field. Yet his 45-yard touchdown reception put Sunday's game out of reach, as the Lions went into Tampa Bay and claimed a 20-6 victory over the Buccaneers.

Originally, the NFL suspended Williams for six games after the league found he violated its gambling policy. However, his suspension was reduced by two games after the league offices altered the original policy.

The 2022 12th overall draft pick didn't do much in his season debut, with two receptions for two yards against the Carolina Panthers. And Williams had only two catches against the Bucs, but one went for a 45-yard touchdown.

Williams easily ran past Tampa Bay's defensive backs. In fact, Jared Goff's deep pass forced the speedy receiver to throttle down, come back to the ball slightly and make a difficult adjustment to snag the pass, as safety Ryan Neal closed the gap because of the throw.

Cleary, Amon-Ra St. Brown is the Lions' WR1. He set career highs Sunday with 12 receptions for 124 yards. But St. Brown's game is predicated on working underneath and finding soft spots in zone coverage. He's fantastic in these areas. Whereas Williams is the threat to stretch coverage to its breaking point.

With those complementary skill sets in the passing game, the Lions offense will become even more dangerous, as long as a shot play is called for Williams a couple times per contest. He doesn't need many opportunities, because the second-year receiver can make them count.

Lack of Running Game Places Undue Pressure on Baker Mayfield, Bucs Passing Game

In what's become a years-long problem, the Buccaneers remain unable to run the ball with any consistency or even effectiveness in many instances.

Case in point, Tampa Bay managed 2.9 yards per carry against the Lions. As a team, the Buccaneers have yet to average more than 3.5 yards per carry in any of their first five contests. Yes, the offense is extremely talented at wide receiver, with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. But such a one-sided approach makes the unit predictable.

Three weeks ago, head coach Todd Bowles bluntly stated about his running game: "We didn't have one. We're not gonna sit here and sugarcoat anything. We own what we have."

The coach might have owned it, but he and his staff haven't done much to make the situation any better. Even coming out of the bye week, no new wrinkles seemed to work or generate anything on the ground. When Mayfield is firing on all cylinders, he's an excellent play-action passer. The Buccaneers are no threat whatsoever to run the ball. When a defense abandons all need to read traditional keys and simply drop into coverage, it's a problem.

A 3-2 start, while sitting atop the NFC South, is impressive. At the same time, the Buccaneers are limited.