‘He’s cut different’: Jameson Williams’ complicated journey to NFL stardom

Eric Woodyard, ESPNOct 9, 2024, 06:00 AM ET

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ST. LOUIS — Chants of “JA-MO! JA-MO! JA-MO!” echo through Cardinal Ritter High School’s darkened gymnasium as Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams enters.

Dozens of cell phone flashlights glow from the stands while a five-minute montage of Williams’ football highlights plays on the scoreboard.

Standing next to a handful of his closest family and friends, he smiles, soaking in the hometown love.

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Minutes later, the lights flick back on, and attention turns to Williams at the gym’s “Wall of Fame,” where he rips off a black cover to reveal the newest addition — a banner of Williams in his No. 3 Ritter jersey, immortalized at the St. Louis school forever.

Watching the scene unfold, Williams’ father, James, quietly steps out to cry.

“People just don’t understand the things we went through here,” James says, his voice cracking. “It was a long journey … this is crazy.”

Williams has tread a tumultuous path since being drafted 12th overall by the Lions in 2022. He missed 11 games as a rookie because of a knee injury, then was suspended four games for gambling in Year 2. He has also become something of a divisive figure among Lions fans. His comfort and visibility in inner-city Detroit — and the late hours he keeps — has made some question his maturity and commitment, while others respect the native of St. Louis’ southside for his authenticity and remaining true to his roots. On the field, his play leading up to this season had not been what he or the Lions had envisioned.

But Williams and the Lions believe the stage is set for a breakout year in 2024. The lessons learned from prior setbacks, a full offseason to prepare, an unwavering belief in his ability and a drive for greatness instilled since childhood might finally converge for Williams, who wants to be a difference-maker for a 3-1 Detroit team with Super Bowl aspirations.

Williams has produced so far. After four games, he leads the Lions in receiving yards (289), yards per catch (22.2) and yards per target (11.6) and is tied for the lead in receiving touchdowns (2). He’s on pace for his first career 1,000-yard season, and he says he’s only getting started.

“Even in past situations, you’ve got to look forward and think bigger,” Williams said. “In the NFL, I’ve been in obstacles. I’ve seen what reporters said. I’ve been in the news.

“My people send me what people say. I just use that as motivation, but I never lost faith because I always know what I can do on the field when I get the ball and I know my abilities and I know what can happen if things get put on my back.”

Jameson Williams’ career in Detroit got off to a rocky start, but he’s beginning to emerge as the playmaker the Lions believed they were getting when they drafted him 12th overall in 2022. Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images

SITTING IN THE stands at Lucas Oil Arena in Indianapolis in January 2022, Williams’ father, James, received a frantic phone call from his son.

“This man in here telling me I can’t go back in the game!” Williams told his father. “I don’t know who he is.”

The man was renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews. And he’d just told Williams, then an All-American receiver at Alabama, that he had torn the ACL in his left knee and could not return. It was the second quarter of the 2021 national championship game against Georgia.

Despite the diagnosis, Williams had pleaded to be allowed to reenter — if only to act as a decoy to help his team.

“If the doctor says you’re done, then you’re done,” James responded.

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Alabama lost the game 33-18, ending Williams’ college career. He had played two seasons at Ohio State before transferring to Alabama, where he broke out. He caught 79 passes for 1,572 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Crimson Tide in 2021, with eight of his TD receptions covering 50 or more yards.

Four months later, the Lions traded up 20 spots to make Williams the 12th selection in the 2022 draft, and the fourth wide receiver taken after Drake London (No. 8), Garrett Wilson (No. 10) and Chris Olave (No. 11).

The ACL injury forced Williams to miss the Lions’ offseason program and the first 11 games of his rookie year in 2022. When he did make his debut, he was a nonfactor. But his lone catch of the season — a 41-yard touchdown — offered a glimpse of the big-play ability that had attracted Detroit.

The following April, James got another call. This time it was from Williams’ agent, Rocky Arceneaux. It was more bad news: Williams was being suspended for the first six games (later reduced to four) of the 2023 season for violating the NFL’s gambling policy. He’d placed mobile bets on non-NFL games from the Lions’ facility. They called Williams next.

Williams made no excuses for the ban.

“It’s rules you’ve got to follow, and that’s really just the main thing,” Williams told ESPN after being reinstated in 2023. “If it’s rules set, you’ve got to follow them. That’s it, really.”

But the verdict meant Williams would have a second straight incomplete run-up to his season, and he’d miss another chance to properly launch his pro career and stake a claim in an ascending Lions offense.

Williams called that suspension “dark days” and leaned on his inner circle to get him through. That group — consisting of James, his mother, Tianna, high school coach Brandon Gregory, his uncle, David Shanks, and younger brother, Jaden — aka “Slim” — showered him with encouragement. They also delivered tough love when necessary. With their support, Williams never stopped believing he was destined for NFL stardom.

“I never doubted myself because I’m always going to find a way. I’ve got to find a way because it’s all on me,” Williams said. “You see all my family, they’re all depending on me. I can’t be the one to fall. It’s on my back. That’s how I think of it. I’ve got to find a way to make something happen.”

Once reinstated for Week 5, Williams had trouble carving out a consistent role in a Lions offense that now featured five eventual Pro Bowlers on its way to a 12-5 season. He showed occasional flashes of his playmaking ability, most notably in his two-touchdown performance in the NFC Championship Game loss to the San Francisco 49ers, in which he took a reverse 42 yards to open the scoring. Still, after two NFL seasons, Williams had not been the player he or the Lions envisioned. He played 18 games, catching 25 passes for 395 yards and three touchdowns. By comparison, London, Wilson and Olave — the receivers drafted just ahead of him — had posted four 1,000-yard seasons between them over the same span, with neither player dipping below 866 receiving yards for an individual season.

“Everybody don’t got the same path. Everybody doesn’t come in the league as a rookie already good with 1,500 yards off the rip,” Williams said of his slow start. “It takes time for certain people, and it might not be with the football side. People were skilled in football, but it might be off-the-field things that keep the football things shifty. So, you’ve got to stay focused on all aspects … and everything is just going to come together. My high school football coach always used to say, ‘Control what you can control, and if you do that, everything will fall in place.'”

Williams sustained a torn left ACL on this play in January 2022 against Georgia. From left: Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports; Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

IN THE 2024 season opener against the Los Angeles Rams, Williams had the best game of his young career. In front of a national audience on “Sunday Night Football,” he hauled in five of his nine targets for 121 yards, including an electric 52-yard touchdown that he celebrated with an exuberant dance at the back pylon.

Hours after the 26-20 victory, a photo of Williams began trending on social media. It was of him standing alongside family and friends — including his brother Slim — at Zorba’s Coney Island, a restaurant on Detroit’s 6 Mile. The photo timestamp was 3 a.m. Since joining the Lions, videos have also surfaced of him lighting fireworks at 1:15 a.m. and being at L. George’s Coney Island on W. McNichols Road in the wee hours.

A repost of the image on X received more than 500,000 views and generated more than 100 comments ranging from support to concern and criticism.

“What’s the problem?” Williams said in response to the photo. “I swear I ain’t trippin’ off [people who are being negative].”

Since arriving in Detroit, Williams’ visibility in the city has led to criticism from Lions fans and local media. A 2023 column in the Detroit Free Press compared him to former Lions first-round receiver Charles Rogers, whose turbulent 15-game NFL career was marked by off-field issues, including drug use. Williams, who has never been associated with drugs or alcohol, is not bothered by the criticism. He said his upbringing in St. Louis has made him comfortable anywhere in Detroit, and he has encouraged Lions teammates to follow his lead and have more of a presence in the city.

Williams has handed out $100 bills to kids selling water on the street in metro Detroit. He also hosted his inaugural free football camp at Chandler Park Academy on the east side last year, and as a rookie, he provided free Thanksgiving meals for families from the Detroit Police Athletic League (PAL). He occasionally pops up at Pistons, Red Wings or Tigers games, and has developed strong ties within Detroit’s rap community, such as rapper Babyface Ray. He recorded a song dedicated to Williams in January 2024 called “Waymo Freestyle.”

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Babyface Ray said Williams has become a beloved figure in the city — in part because he’s so personable and accessible. He said he knew the photo of Williams after the Rams game would be scrutinized.

“I knew they was going to try to make a big thing out of that, but you’ve got to understand when you grow up like that, it’s a natural thing,” he said. “He’s not trying to be confrontational or make a big thing out of it, it’s just a Coney Island, a food spot for him, and he feels comfortable in that environment because that’s where he comes from.

“For somebody who don’t come from that and don’t understand that they might look at that as a bad thing. I know bad things can happen right there, but he’s just comfortable in that environment because he comes from that. It’s not a big thing.”

Williams calls the negative perceptions of his off-field activities a “misunderstanding.”

“I tell some of the people on the team that, ‘If y’all do some of the little stuff I’m doing, like going out in the city and just being seen, Bro, you don’t understand. They will love you forever,'” he told ESPN. “You don’t think they know you; they love football, and they know who you is in the trenches. They know football players. You will make their whole day. You will make their whole year.”

Gregory, Williams’ coach at Cardinal Ritter, still serves as one of his mentors. He knows why his former star player is comfortable anywhere, but urged caution.

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“Wherever he’s at, he just wants to be around us — if that makes sense. He wants to be around and give back to his people,” Gregory said. “But in hindsight, you can’t be down there in the projects with your Maserati either, because you are who you are.”

Lions general manager Brad Holmes said: “[There are] natural concerns with any of our players out late. I do know where he’s from and I know why he’s comfortable in any setting.”

Those who grew up with Williams echo his sentiment that the experience in St. Louis and Detroit is similar.

“The difference between Detroit and St. Louis is the size. But the neighborhoods, the people are the same,” said Kaleb Hellems, one of Williams’ lifelong friends. “If Jamo was never born here and he was born in Detroit, you would have never known. He just match the swag. You see all the rappers, and everybody there love him because he brings that realness.

“He’s cut different. You don’t get that from everybody. This dude is the same person I was sleeping on the floor with over there at his crib. Ain’t no difference. He just made something happen. And that’s just the best thing that I’ve seen.”

Williams scored on a 52-yard touchdown catch in this year’s season opener against the Rams. From left: Cooper Neill/Getty Images; Detroit Free Press-USA TODAY Sports

WILLIAMS GREW UP with his three siblings in the south side of St. Louis. The family bounced from home to home before settling in a small, two-bedroom house on Winnebago Street when Williams was a teen. The children were closely monitored by their parents. Rules were strict. Williams was not permitted to have a cell phone until high school. And James drove his children everywhere they needed to go.

Through it all, James and Tianna prepared their children to thrive at the highest levels while remaining grounded. James and Tianna were both track athletes at Sumner High School in St. Louis. Williams’ older brother, James Jr., and older sister, Ja’Inna, also ran track at Northwest Missouri State University and Wayland Baptist University, respectively. And Slim played safety at Wayne State.

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As a kid, Jameson woke up as early as 6 a.m. for training sessions with his parents and siblings. On Sundays, they would often train three times a day, which included running the hills at nearby Forest Park.

Part of the routine was a workout before bed every night, regardless of where the family was living or who was at the home, including overnight guests.

“You’ve got to work out before you go to sleep no matter who you is,” said Hellems, who along with current Lions wide receiver Isaiah Williams was a frequent visitor to the Williams’ home. “Rather you start [on the football team], rather you don’t, rather you’re even on the team or not. That was the house rules.”

When, at the age of 12, Jameson told James he wanted to be a top-10 NFL draft pick, James put a plan together to help his son achieve his dream.

“He pushed the plan [for Jameson], and all we had to do was just follow it. He saw it. Jameson saw it,” Tianna said of James. “So, it was like from the beginning, you wouldn’t be parenting if you don’t listen to your kid [when] they tell you exactly what they want. So it was up to us to get him somewhere near it or as close as possible to what he wanted to do.”

After Williams’ first career NFL touchdown — a 41-yarder against Minnesota — Williams found James in the stands and gave him the ball. James and his son spoke regularly over the phone this summer about Williams’ goals for the season, and that influence is being celebrated today. But James’ passion when giving advice once caused tension in their relationship, they said, because they didn’t always agree on everything.

“He stays on him constantly. It ain’t no letting up,” Tianna said of James. “Sometimes they bump heads and won’t talk for a couple days, but Jameson is the type that he don’t like nobody mad at him … not us. This circle here. No. He can be mad at him for a couple of days, but no.”

“We got into it a few times because of that,” James added. “We normally get into it in the offseason because I’m really focused on getting better. I really can see him wearing a Gold Jacket. That’s not something that I’m asking for, I can see it in his future if he does what I think he can do, and he’s presented the opportunities to do that.”

Williams now understands James was trying to keep him on track for what they both see for him down the road. Tianna said she has witnessed Williams improve as a listener, which he admits wasn’t always his strength.

“Sometimes you just listen, and it goes in one ear and out the other and you just still do your own thing,” Williams said. “I had to really just listen to the things that was being told to me, not skipping over things and just really pay attention to how things was going. I had to focus up and get right. It takes time.”

For Isaiah Williams, who has witnessed Jameson Williams’ journey from St. Louis to the NFL, it’s gratifying to see his efforts paying off on the biggest stage.

“You see all the adversity he done got over and still got to battle and he still makes plays and I’m like, ‘Bruh, I know where we come from. We ain’t supposed to be here statistically,'” Isaiah Williams said. “Just to see it happen is special.”

Jameson Williams’ family and his St. Louis roots mean the world to him. Eric Woodyard for ESPN

WILLIAMS CALLED THIS offseason “personal.” It was his first with a full run-up, and he focused on improving all parts of his game. He participated in spring throwing sessions with Lions quarterback Jared Goff in California. He spent time in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, training for positional work. And he returned to St. Louis for speed work with his longtime private coach, Derrick Miller.

“I think he’s faster than Tyreek Hill,” Miller said. “I think he’s the fastest man in the league. … In all honesty, if he chose the track and field route, he probably could’ve been an Olympian. I really believe that with all my heart.”

That world-class speed showed in the Lions’ Week 4 Monday night win over the Seattle Seahawks at Ford Field. Detroit was nursing a one-score lead late in the third quarter before Williams broke the game open in a flash. He caught a deep crossing route and outran an angle to the sideline before high-stepping, Deion Sanders-style, the final 30 yards on a 70-yard touchdown strike to extend the Lions’ lead.

“He’s something else. He’s a one-play touchdown guy and I know he strikes fear in every team we play. They’re going to see that [play] and it’s going to strike even more fear,” Goff said after the 42-29 victory. “So, he’s a stud and we’re lucky to have him.”

Detroit envisions Williams as a big-play option next to All-Pro receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. The confidence offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has in him was “as high as it’s ever been” entering the season. Williams will be used as more than just a deep speed threat; he’s a major contributor to help open up the offense.

Williams, celebrating a touchdown at Ford Field earlier this season, has found a home in Detroit. Detroit Free Press-USA TODAY Sports

“He’s grown in so many ways, on and off the field,” Johnson said. “As a player, as a route runner, as a receiver, and then off the field just his preparation, how he’s taking care of his body, his demeanor with his teammates and interactions with them.”

While Williams’ hot start to the season has been encouraging, he’s aiming higher.

“I want to be at the top of everything. I just want to have the most yards and touchdowns — that would be my personal goals,” Williams said. “It don’t matter about catches because I know what I’m going to do when I get the ball.”

Goff credits much of Williams’ early breakout to the personal growth he’s seen.

“He’s been so intentional about getting things right and so accountable to himself,” Goff told ESPN. “As far as when he does make a mistake, which everyone makes a mistake, he’s the first one to say, ‘I’ve got to be better. I’ve got to make that catch. I’ve got to run that route better.’ And that’s all you want.

“He’s done a great job of putting the onus on himself to be better, and maturity is a great word.”

Back at the jersey retirement ceremony at Cardinal Ritter, Williams is reminded of his resilience, which those around him now rave about. He says witnessing his No. 3 jersey being immortalized in his hometown served as extra motivation to shoot for similar heights in the NFL.

Williams says the signs of a breakout campaign in his third NFL season are clear, noting he experienced his college breakthrough in Year 3 as well.

“It’s something special about that number three. On the south side [of St. Louis], that’s the third district, too. It’s something about that three,” he said. “I think that’s what it’s telling us. It’s all falling in line. Sometimes it’s signs for some things. Sometimes it might just slap you in the face.”

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