Damion Willis

Damion Lakeith Willis (born June 20, 1997) is an American football wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Troy.

Lewis was born in Jackson, Mississippi and grew up in Meridian, Mississippi. He was raised by a single mother who worked as a hospice nurse. Willis attended and played football at Southeast Lauderdale High School. He registered at least 1,000 receiving yards in each of his final three seasons playing for the Tigers. As a senior, Willis had 48 catches with 1,154 yards receiving and 17 touchdowns and was named First Team MHSAA 3A All-State. Southeast Lauderdale retired his number in 2019.

Despite receiving offers fromLouisiana Tech and Louisiana-Monroe, Willis opted to begin collegiate career at East Mississippi Community College, playing sparingly in his freshman year. As a sophomore, he led the Lions with 620 receiving yards and 18.2 yards per catch while finishing second on the team with six touchdown receptions and third with 34 catches. Willis transferred to Troy University, which had recruited him out of high school, for the remaining two seasons of his eligibility.

In his first season with the Trojans, Willis started eight games and finished the season with 42 receptions for 620 yards and three touchdowns and was named honorable mention All-Sun Belt Conference. He caught a New Orleans Bowl record 11 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns against North Texas. Willis was named first team All-Sun Belt as a senior after catching 56 passes for 876 yards and a conference-best 10 touchdowns, despite missing two and a half games due to injury.

Willis signed with the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent on April 28, 2019. He made his NFL debut on September 8, 2019 against the Seattle Seahawks, starting in place of injured receiver A. J. Green and making three receptions for 30 yards. Willis was waived by the October 23, 2019, and re-signed to the practice squad the next day. The Bengals promoted Willis back up to the active roster on November 15, 2019. On December 3, 2019, Willis was waived by the Bengals and re-signed to the practice squad. He was promoted back to the active roster on December 10, 2019. Willis finished his rookie season with nine receptions for 82 yards in ten games played (two starts).