What Did The Lions Offer Jamaal Williams?

The six-year veteran Jamaal Williams is a running back formerly with the Green Bay Packers and most recently with the Detroit Lions. Williams is a very light-hearted, fun loving player, but one who also takes his game very seriously. A leader on the field and a fan favorite off the field, he finds the perfect blend in living his personal as well as professional life.

Williams is actually a talented rusher but one who didn’t have a huge year until the 2022 season. His game time has always been quite limited and was rarely the starting running back on the team. With that said, last year he led the league with 17 rushing touchdowns and in doing so set a franchise record for the Lions. It was also his first 1,000-plus rushing yard season in his career. One of Jamaal’s biggest strengths has been his ability to take good care of the ball as his first fumble came after 752 touches of the ball.

Being an asset to the Lions organization, and a well-loved person all around, the fans and the organization as a whole did not want him to leave. If sources are to be believed the Lions tried to extend his contract however the two sides couldn’t meet on common grounds.

Lions offer to Jamaal Williams

The Lions then signed former Chicago Bears running back David Montgomery to a three-year $18 million deal. According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, Williams was also offered a deal that was close to the one they offered Montgomery.

As far as the whole contractual saga that took place prior to Jamaal leaving the franchise, there are two different sides to the tale. While it was true that the Lions management tried to extend Williams’ stay in Detroit, fans were left perplexed to know that the situation didn’t unfold the way they expected it to.

Towards the end of March, the Lions general manager Brad Holmes spoke on the matter at hand and said that the management had set aside a particular amount for resigning Williams on a budgeting and planning standpoint pre-free agency. Furthermore, he went on to state that even the signing of Montgomery did not eclipse the funds they had set aside for Williams and since Montgomery was able to work with the money on offer the team went ahead and finalized the deal. The story from Jamaal Williams is however much different to the one coming out of the Lions camp.

Jamaal Williams takes on Lions' offer

Williams had first come out in the open stating that he felt disrespected with the offer that was put in front of him by the Lions. As per his thoughts, he believed that the franchise no longer wanted him back and that is why they lowballed his offer in an attempt to force him out.

Further speculation arose as Williams signed a three year $12 million deal with the New Orleans Saints after he became a free agent. According to reports, the Lions deal that they offered Williams was not even close to the figure he signed for with the Saints. Williams further went on to say that it was unfortunate that the two parties couldn’t work out a deal. Overall though something somewhere looks amiss as both sides have shared conflicting thoughts as to what actually did transpire a few months ago.