Three important decisions the Lions must make before the regular season

NFL training camps are heating up and teams have plenty to figure out over the next month.

Here are three decisions the Detroit Lions must make before they kick off their regular season on Sept 8.

What is Jameson Williams’ role in the offense?

Detroit drafted Williams to be a playmaking part of their offense, but because of injuries and a gambling-related suspension, he's only produced a 25-reception, 395-yard, three-touchdown return on their investment through two seasons.

The injuries don’t seem to be an issue and it’s safe to say Williams has learned his lesson with the gambling, so is this finally the year the former Alabama star has his breakout season? If not, the Lions are going to have to look elsewhere on the roster to find a reliable No. 3 pass-catcher behind star WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and tight end Sam LaPorta.

What does the carry split at RB look like?

Last season, it was clear the plan was to start David Montgomery and let then-rookie Jahmyr Gibbs work his way into the offense slowly. That plan worked well until Montgomery got hurt in mid-October and Gibbs really started to establish himself as a potential bell-cow back.

Montgomery ended the year with a higher percentage of the team’s carries (43.8 percent to 36.4 percent) and rushing yards (43.9 percent to 40.8 percent) compared to Gibbs, but there’s no denying the second-year tailback needs to be an integral part of the offense for the entire season this year. The real question: is has Gibbs surpassed Montgomery on the depth chart and, if so, how many more touches per game will he get?

Which players occupy which roles in the secondary?

It’s clear that Carlton Davis has one starting CB job locked up, but what about the others? Rookie first-round pick Terrion Arnold seems like a safe bet to be Detroit’s CB2 after the team moved up to draft him, but Amik Robertson could have something to say about that.

It’s also worth seeing what the team does at the nickel position. Brian Branch could stick it out there like he did last year, or more back to his natural safety position and give way to rookie second-rounder Ennis Rakestraw Jr., who’s played nickel pretty frequently during camp and made a strong impression on the coaching staff.

If Branch does move back to safety, what happens with Kerby Joseph and Ifeatu Melifonwu? The Lions have some tough decisions looming.