Dan Campbell addresses whether Jameson Williams will play immediately after returning from suspension

The Detroit Lions received some good news regarding receiver Jameson Williams, with the NFL decreasing his suspension from six games. Now, the former Alabama standout will be able to return to the field this week.

But do the Lions plan to play Williams immediately after such a significant amount of time away? Head coach Dan Campbell said the receiver could see the field, but don’t expect him to see action the entire game.

“If he does play, he can’t play 60 plays,” Campbell said, per the Detroit Free Press. “That’s not smart. So we can’t do that to him. So we’ll see where it goes. It’s all about improvement, no different than the rest of the team. Every week we just got to get a little bit better. He just needs to get a little bit better and we’ll take it from there.”

Williams faced a six-game suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy. Recently, the league and the NFL Players Union agreed to new policies, which reduced the length of the suspension for the receiver.

Williams has seen action in just six games through his first year-plus in the league. Injury recovery took him away from the field for a majority of his rookie campaign and the gambling suspension cost him four games this year.

Still, Detroit believes it has a dynamic playmaker in the receiver. So, while he may not play every offensive snap, there’s a good chance Williams is on the field in some capacity this weekend.

The Lions selected Williams in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft with the No. 16 pick. He started his college career at Ohio State before transferring to Alabama, where he became a breakout star.

In his lone season with the Crimson Tide, Williams racked up 1,572 yards and 15 touchdowns on 79 receptions. He averaged an impressive 19.9 yards per catch during that 2021 season at Alabama.

Despite Williams’ absence, Detroit has still managed to put together a strong start in 2023. Detroit sits atop the NFC North standings at 3-1 and is coming off a win over Green Bay.

Sunday might be the perfect game for Williams to return to the lineup. The Lions play a winless Carolina team in Week 5 and have a great chance to improve to 4-1 this season.

Kickoff for Sunday’s game has been set for 1 p.m. ET and the contest airs on FOX.