Jamaal Williams

Williams is more of a Culture Guy than a playmaker, but his 2022 season was a reminder that being a Culture Guy can get you a big opportunity every once in a while. Running behind a loaded Detroit O-line in one of the league's most well-schemed offenses, Williams saw his usage spike in highly favorable circumstances, securing a near-monopoly on goal-line carries in an offense that moved the ball all year and didn't score many distance TDs until December. Now in New Orleans on a three-year contract, Williams won't necessarily be used the same way the Lions used him in 2022. Even if the Saints see Williams as their primary goal-line back, the trio of Taysom Hill, Alvin Kamara and third-round pick Kendre Miller represents tougher competition for high-value touches than D'Andre Swift alone provided in Detroit. The best hope for Williams putting up consistent numbers might be the first month of the season while Kamara serves a three-game suspension.

Williams' first year in Detroit was much like his four seasons in Green Bay. While the 27-year-old did set a career high in touches (by one), his efficiency was poor and no back with more than 100 carries averaged less than his 1.4 yards per carry after contact. Williams is a decent pass catcher, a good blocker and has never lost a fumble in his NFL career — valuable traits from a team standpoint. But there's little explosiveness or big-play ability in Williams' game, whereas teammate D'Andre Swift is more of a threat to pick up extra yards that aren't blocked. Williams had only one play of more than 20 yards in 2021, and he has only two plays of more than 40 yards in his career. Lions coach Dan Campbell values his work ethic and the stability he brings to the roster, but Williams' production depends entirely on volume, something that isn't at all stable given his role behind Swift in an offense with a subpar quarterback.

Williams was remarkably consistent through his four seasons in Green Bay, though depending on the perspective, that's not necessarily a compliment. A fourth-round pick in 2017, he actually led the club in rushing yards as a rookie before ceding the top job to Aaron Jones in their second season together, but Williams' numbers remained flat while Jones' production soared. Williams still delivered a solid 700 or so scrimmage yards and a handful of TDs every year, proving capable on all three downs and in all situations without really excelling in any. With Jones returning on a big contract and 2020 second-round pick AJ Dillon ready to step into a larger role, the Packers parted ways with Williams, only to see him land with their NFC North rivals. As the backup to D'Andre Swift, Williams will fill a role he's very accustomed to, and the Lions' subsequent decision to cut Kerryon Johnson loose removed his most obvious competition for those secondary snaps and touches.

While the surface numbers say Williams had his most productive season yet in the NFL - posting career highs with 4.3 YPC and 39 catches while tying the six total touchdowns he scored as a rookie - it's likely 2019 was his high-water mark. Aaron Jones definitively emerged as the Packers' top backfield option, and while Williams' blocking and receiving skills allowed him to be plugged in as Jones' sub in just about any situation, a lack of speed and elusiveness mean he has little upside. Williams will get the yards the offensive line and scheme create for him, but not much else. His surprising spike in receiving touchdowns also seems unsustainable, as four of his five scores came during a four-game stretch in which Davante Adams Aaron Rodgers' preferred red-zone target - was on the shelf or at less than 100 percent healthy. With 2020 second-round pick AJ Dillon (6-0, 247) also in the mix and likely to handle whatever goal-line carries Jones doesn't get, Williams looks headed for a reduced role.

Williams' second season in the NFL was similar to his first. His grinding running style and lack of speed led to another year of less than 4.0 YPC, and Aaron Jones' performance cleared up any doubt about who should be the Packers' No. 1 RB. Williams has his uses, particularly in short-yardage situations, but he was less effective as a receiver than he had been as a rookie and simply doesn't have the big-play upside of Jones. The front office did little to bolster the depth chart behind the duo in the offseason, only adding Dexter Williams to the running back mix and waiting until the sixth round to do so, so the more veteran Williams will once again play second fiddle to Jones and handle the grunt work in the trenches. Aside from a prolonged injury absence for Jones, the best-case scenario for Jamaal Williams involves an increase in his goal-line work that leads to more TDs (he saw only two carries inside the 5-yard line in 2018). Of course, the Packers tend to lean on Aaron Rodgers in the red zone, and Williams hasn't made any real case to change that.

Once Ty Montgomery and Aaron Jones broke down, Williams got his chance as the lead back in Green Bay and held his own, averaging more than 93 scrimmage yards per game over the second half of the season and scoring five touchdowns even with Brett Hundley under center. Williams, a fourth-round pick out of BYU, was projected as a possible goal-line weapon given his size (6-0, 213) and physical running style, but he proved surprisingly adept as a receiver as well. After catching only 33 passes over his final three college campaigns, he pulled down 25 of 34 targets for Green Bay. Despite a minor knee injury picked up early in the season, he also played all 16 games, dimming concerns that his lack of elusiveness could leave him injury-prone in the NFL. The team will have a lot of competition in the backfield during training camp, but his solid finish to 2017 and Jones' two-game suspension to start this season give Williams a leg up on the starting job Week 1.

Despite being a fourth-round pick, Williams has the size (6-0, 212) and strength to be an early-down back in the NFL and has shown the ability to keep his legs churning and pick up extra yards after contact, making him a potentially effective complement to converted wide receiver Ty Montgomery in the Packers' backfield. Williams had trouble staying on the field in college, missing time in his final two seasons with knee and ankle issues, and his physical running style and lack of elusiveness could lead to more injuries in the NFL. He also doesn't figure to catch many passes, as he only had 15 receptions his last two seasons at BYU. Even with Montgomery in the lead role, there should be plenty of snaps available in Green Bay's backfield, but Williams' limited skill set could prevent him from inheriting more than a small portion of them.