When the Detroit Lions attempted—and failed to re-sign Josh Reynolds in free agency, it was widely assumed that the team would find someone else to replace his output. Reynolds “only” caught 40 catches for 608 yards and five touchdowns last season, but he was a model player who could play any receiver position in a pinch and had a terrific chemistry with quarterback Jared Goff.
But now, weeks after the NFL Draft, the Lions have decided to do nothing. They have not signed a free agent, have not used any of their draft picks on a receiver, and their reported undrafted free agent class of rookies only includes two slot receivers. On Wednesday, during a radio appearance on 97.1 The Ticket, Lions general manager Brad Holmes voiced confidence in the wide receiver room. “We feel good about the group that we have,” Holmes added.
The Lions’ projected starters at the wide receiver position are Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, and Donovan Peoples-Jones. During the radio spot, Holmes specifically pointed to the development of Williams as a reason for confidence.
“We have Jameson Williams, that’s been coming on very, very strong,” Holmes said. “We have high hopes for him. We like where he’s at, at this point. We know that he’s going to continue to get better.”
Last year, Williams produced just 24 catches for 354 yards and two touchdowns, but much of that production came toward the end of the season. From Week 11 to 17, Williams started each game and averaged 2.3 catches and 38 yards per game. For comparison’s sake, Reynolds averaged 2.4 receptions and 35.8 yards per game last season.
Williams clearly displayed growth at the end of the year, showing improvements in route precision and early season drops. After catching just nine of 21 targets in his first nine career games (42.9%), Williams has caught 26 of 39 in the last 12 games (including playoffs for a catch rate of 66.7%. That said, there is still plenty of room for growth. Williams only has a single game with five catches or 60+ yards.
Beyond Williams, Holmes is hopeful for Peoples-Jones. Last year, Detroit traded a sixth-round pick for the experienced receiver, but he only had five catches for 58 yards. Detroit chose to re-sign him this offseason, and Holmes feels that with more time in this offense, he can do many of the same things Reynolds did.
