Jamaal Williams Fantasy Football Outlook (2023)

By Andrew Erickson (FantasyPros), Fri, Sep 1st 2023, 10:35am EDT

How does a running back finish as the RB12 while catching only 12 passes? Touchdowns. That's exactly how the season played out for Detroit Lions running back Jamaal Williams. He took on the role as the Lions' goal-line back, carrying the ball a league-high 41 times inside the 10-yard line for 13 rushing TDs. Williams would finish the year with a league-high 17 rushing TDs - not too far off his 16.4 expected touchdowns.

Touchdown regression pundits will shout to the heavens that Williams cannot duplicate his 2022 success and his new landing spot in New Orleans confirms this. He signed for 3 years, $12 million, $8 million guaranteed but will now compete for red-zone touches with both Alvin Kamara and Taysom Hill. Kamara totaled just eight carries inside the 10-yard line last season with Hill chipping in 12. But Kamara's3-game suspension will boost Williams' early-season fantasy value for zero-RB drafters as the Saints offense has never shied away from featuring the likes of Latavius Murray or Mark Ingram when AK41 has missed time in the past. He will likely be the early-down grinder and red-zone back, so even a potential addition like Kareem Hunt taking on receiving duties won't impact Williams too drastically.