In the 2022 season, running back Jamaal Williams broke out for the Detroit Lions, putting up 1,066 yards and 17 touchdowns, which far surpassed his production in any of his previous seasons.
He was a free agent this offseason, and he ended up signing with the New Orleans Saints, who are now looking like a legitimate playoff team, at least on paper.
The Lions made an attempt to give him a new contract and keep him in town, but he said at a press conference that the offer they made him was “disrespectful” and that it made him feel like they didn’t want him to stick around.
Jamaal Williams felt like the Lions were done with him.
“The offer they gave me, I feel like was very just disrespectful and just showing they really didn’t want me to really be there,” he said at his Saints press conference. pic.twitter.com/HtBPmvUy5M
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) March 17, 2023
Coming off a 3-13-1 finish in 2021, practically no one was expecting Detroit to do anything of note this past season.
But after starting 1-6, it went 8-2 the rest of the way and came very close to claiming a wild-card playoff spot.
Now with Williams gone, it looks like the Lions have little chance of making the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
Meanwhile, the Saints, who won seven games last season, now have Williams in the backfield, Chris Olave and Michael Thomas at wideout and Derek Carr at quarterback.
Even if running back Alvin Kamara has to miss action next year due to his pending battery charges, they look well-positioned to finish first in the NFC South and make the playoffs for the first time since Drew Brees’ final season.
For that to happen, Williams will have to prove that his performance in 2022 wasn’t the least bit of a fluke.
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