Jamaal Williams has made it clear he wants back in the NFL, and he has also taken a direct step toward a possible return to the Detroit Lions.
According to Dave Birkett, Williams reached out to Lions coach Dan Campbell last weekend to let him know he was on the comeback trail. The move is notable because Williams spent 2021-2022 in Detroit, where he became one of the team’s most popular players and then delivered one of the biggest touchdown seasons in recent franchise memory.
Williams rushed for 17 touchdowns for the Detroit Lions in 2022, a total that helped define his two-year run with the team. He left after the 2023 season following a free agency contract dispute, then spent two unsuccessful years away from the kind of role he had in Detroit. Williams has been out of football since the end of the 2024 season.
Why a reunion could make sense
The Lions are not making a change at running back right now, but the situation is worth watching. Jahmyr Gibbs has seen his workload increase, and Detroit is also using Sione Vaki and Jacob Saylors in supporting roles. Through two weeks, Gibbs was tied with Kenneth Walker for the most touches in the NFL with 56, which shows how heavily the Lions have leaned on him early.
That does not automatically create a roster opening, but it does explain why Williams’ timing is relevant. If Detroit wants more depth later, or if its backfield picture changes, the door could be worth reopening for a player who already knows the system, the coach and the market. Williams said there are no hard feelings about how things ended, and that he did not want to leave Detroit in the first place.
“I didn’t want to go nowhere. I wanted to be there,” Williams said, adding that Detroit had its reasons and that “there’s no personal feelings, no hard feelings.” He also said the Saints offered what he wanted at the time, which is why he ended up there.
For now, the Lions are holding tight at running back. Still, Williams’ outreach to Campbell is a clear sign that he is looking for one more chance, and Detroit is the team most closely tied to that possibility.
