Once it became clear Jameson Williams was going to make his NFL debut last week, Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell went to special teams coordinator Dave Fipp and asked if Williams could be of any help as a gunner on the punt team.
"I said, 'Oh, he’ll help us,'" Fipp said Thursday.
Then Campbell asked if Fipp had enough time to get Williams ready for that role.
"Oh, we'll get him ready," Fipp told Campbell.
Fipp asked Williams if he was comfortable playing gunner in his first NFL game, and when the rookie receiver said yes, the Lions eagerly made plans to use Williams on special teams — to the surprise of some observers who questioned the logic of playing a first-round pick 11 months removed from a torn ACL in the kick game.