Who Should I Start? Jameson Williams or Jahmyr Gibbs

Friday, September 5, 5:04 PM

Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams finished the 2024 regular season on a tear, recording 34 catches for 463 yards and three touchdowns over his final seven games. Reporting out of Lions' training camp this summer has indicated that the team is looking to involve Williams in the offense even more in 2025, and that new play-caller John Morton wants to push the ball downfield at a higher rate. That may be difficult to do in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers, who feature one of the league's most fearsome pass rushes on paper. Williams did not play in Week 9 against the Packers last season, but he led all Lions in targets (eight) in the Week 14 matchup between the two teams and hauled in five catches for 80 yards. He profiles as a boom/bust WR3/flex option for fantasy managers in Week 1, but his target volume on Sunday could be informative of how the team plans to incorporate him going forward.

Friday, September 5, 4:47 PM

Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs was a consensus early first-round pick in fantasy drafts this year after recording over 1,900 yards from scrimmage and leading the NFL with 20 touchdowns in 2024. Heading into his third NFL season, Gibbs could be gradually stealing touches from his veteran backfield mate, David Montgomery. However, Gibbs has not historically had huge fantasy success against his Week 1 opponent, the Green Bay Packers. In four career games against Green Bay, Gibbs has averaged just over 11 touches for just over 68 yards per contest and scored only one touchdown. The Packers defense generally excels with speed over power, so the Lions have leaned on their physical run game behind Montgomery in recent seasons. Gibbs is still clearly a must-start fantasy RB1 this week with massive upside, but past performance against the Packers suggests this might not be a monster showing for him.