Why Jamo will takeover Jaguars secondary on Sunday

Facing up against the worst secondary so far this season, wide receiver Jameson Williams should have himself a big game and take the top off the offense.

All aboard the Jameson Williams train! After having a solid start to his third season in the NFL, the Detroit Lions wide receiver found himself in more trouble with the NFL and the law. Williams was suspended for two games for violating the league’s performance-enhancing substances (PES) policy. Outside of the NFL, Williams was taken into police custody for a moment during a traffic stop. After all the noise for two weeks, Williams returned last week against the Houston Texans and finished with three catches for 53 yards.

This week, expect much more production out of him.

Facing off against the Jacksonville Jaguars this week, who are currently projected to have the number one pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Lions should have a field day with them. Not only are the Lions up against backup quarterback and former New England Patriots starter Mac Jones, they are up against a poor defense. Let me tell you why Williams could have his best game yet in the NFL on Sunday.

Rebound game for Goff = more targets

Lions quarterback Jared Goff had arguably one of the worst games of his career last week against the Houston Texans. While some of Goff’s mistakes aren’t entirely on him, there were plenty in that game that were. Goff will want to erase what happened last week with a better performance against the Jaguars on Sunday. Lucky for him, the Jaguars have one of the worst secondaries in the league (more on that soon).

Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson will draw up some deep shots for Goff that should be against open receivers instead of contested battles. Even if Goff doesn’t try to take the top off the Jaguars secondary, he will want to turn around his completion percentage of last week (50%) and return it to his average of what it was before (78.3%). With that in mind, as well as facing a poor Jaguars secondary, Goff should lean on the passing attack instead of the run game this week.

Whether it’s a deep ball or a catch and run, no wide receiver will benefit more from an angry Goff who wants to show that last week was a fluke than Williams. Williams did well in the matchup last week, getting three catches for 53 yards. Williams was targeted on one of the intercepted deep passes, and there was one earlier in the game that was almost an interception. Still, Goff underthrew Williams, something we haven’t seen happen in a while.

If Goff is going to want to make an explosive play, he knows Williams can be a deadly option, but if he wants to play it safe, Williams can quickly turn a 5-yard slant route into something bigger. Either way, if the Lions turn into a pass-heavy team against Jacksonville, Williams should get more targets and more chances to dominate.

Jags poor secondary play

This week is the perfect recipe for a big game for Williams. The Lions have one of the strongest passing attacks in the NFL as they lead the NFL in completion percentage (71.9 percent) and face a secondary that is in the top three in passing yards allowed (2,743), completion percentage allowed (69.9), and yards per attempt (8.0). With the Jaguars struggling to stop teams at every part of their secondary, the Lions should have a field day against this unit. While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys, and Los Angeles Rams are in the top three of a few of these categories, they are consistently different from the Jaguars.

Funny enough about those three teams, Williams has had three of his best four games against those opponents. Against the Bucs, Cowboys, and Rams, Williams had 13 catches for 276 yards and two touchdowns. His best career game was against the Rams at the start of the season, as it’s still been the only game where Williams eclipsed over 100 yards. Williams is an explosive player who can make explosive plays quickly, so facing another poor secondary invites Williams to take over again.

Regarding the Jaguars in the secondary that would take on Williams, the main focus would be the safeties. Jaguars safeties Andre Cisco and Antonio Johnson are both having their worst seasons yet in the NFL, according to PFF.

Cisco

• PFF grade – 52.5
• Targets – 24
• Receptions – 17
• Yards allowed – 358
• Touchdowns allowed – 3
• Penalties – 1

Johnson

• PFF grade – 39.7
• Targets – 23
• Receptions – 16
• Yards allowed – 207
• Touchdowns allowed – 1
• Penalties – 3

It doesn’t get much better if you want to include the cornerbacks. Starting cornerbacks Ronald Darby and Tyson Campbell are struggling in coverage, and if Campbell can’t go this week, as he was limited in practice on Wednesday and Thursday, Montaric Brown will take his spot. Brown would be a step down for Campbell and put the Jags secondary on an uphill battle.

Darby

• PFF grade – 59.8
• Targets – 52
• Receptions – 38
• Yards allowed – 510
• Touchdowns allowed – 4
• Penalties – 3

Campbell

• PFF grade – 62.6
• Targets – 22
• Receptions – 13
• Yards allowed – 139
• Touchdowns allowed – 0
• Penalties – 3

Brown

• PFF grade – 67
• Targets – 47
• Receptions – 33
• Yards allowed – 348
• Touchdowns allowed – 2
• Penalties – 3

Williams trying to hit his goal

Before the season started, Williams had two big personal goals. It was to lead the NFL in yards and touchdowns. He is far from being the leader right now in either category, as Williams’s 414 yards and three touchdowns are behind Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, who leads the league in yards (981) and touchdowns (10). It isn’t likely for Williams to achieve that goal this season, but anything is possible with eight games left to play.

If Williams didn’t lose two games for his suspension, he might have a better chance at hitting that goal or at least one of them. With the lost time, Williams could make up for it with bigger games from here on out. Being down so far could also motivate him to work harder and stay on a good path for the rest of the season to try and achieve that goal. Despite wanting to hit the goals he laid out in front of himself, Williams would take his team’s success and Super Bowl chances over his own goals.