How To Treat Jameson Williams as Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Target

The Detroit Lions are on fire – three straight wins! – and the good news keeps on coming: Rookie wideout Jameson Williams returned to practice on Monday.

Detroit selected Williams 12th overall in the 2022 NFL Draft despite his injury status after suffering a torn ACL in the CFP National Championship Game. But now, he’s back. And there should be opportunity aplenty given the T.J. Hockenson trade.

Action Network’s fantasy football experts are all-in on Williams, both for this season and beyond. Check out what they think below.

Sean Koerner: Williams has been designated to return to practice and could be 1-2 weeks away from his potential NFL debut. He isn't a target for WR-needy teams who need to win now. However, he is a very enticing high-upside bench stash for the fantasy playoffs.

There is a chance the Lions are fighting for a playoff berth later in the season and more willing to fully unleash Williams in a full-time role. With T.J. Hockenson out of the picture, there are more available targets for him to potentially soak up.

Williams profiles as a polished downfield threat with WR3 upside come fantasy playoff time. You will likely be able to get him fairly cheap this week, but his value will only grow as the season goes on.

Samantha Previte: Williams has not played this year due to a torn ACL he suffered in the CFP National Championship game against Georgia. In spite of this, the first-team All-American was selected 12th overall in this year's draft.

Williams has sky-high potential and is estimated to have 4.3-speed. He stands at 6-foot-1 and 179 pounds and should stack up well against physical NFL secondaries.

Once he does return, he will have minimal competition from the Lions' depth chart for targets. Amon-Ra St. Brown has been the team's alpha, but the loss of star tight end T.J. Hockenson, whom the Lions dealt to the Vikings at the NFL trade deadline, has left a gaping void in this offense. Williams is worth a speculative add and can be stashed in IR slots in most leagues.

Mike Triplett: This probably goes without saying, but if you’re in a dynasty or keeper league and Williams somehow slipped through the cracks because of his injury status, he’s someone worth emptying your FAAB account on.

Or if you’re out of contention, make an aggressive trade offer. Williams would have been the top receiver drafted in this historic WR draft class if he hadn’t torn his ACL in Alabama’s national championship game in January. And he could leap back to the head of the class heading into 2023 and beyond.