About two weeks before the Jets opened their season Monday night with a 48-17 win at the Lions, they gathered for a players-only meeting that set the tone for their Week 1 preparation.

The meeting lasted for about 10 minutes, and several players addressed the team, including fourth-year defensive end Leonard Williams.

He is not one of the Jets' most boisterous or vocal leaders. He is modest and laidback by nature, and doesn't often speak up. But he is one of the Jets' best players, a respected presence in the locker room. And as he takes on a larger leadership role this year, his assertiveness increasing, his words are making his teammates pay attention.

During that players-only meeting, Williams spoke for about three minutes. But his words continued to resonate in the Jets' victorious locker room Monday.

Williams said the meeting's mission was to "make sure we're all on the same page about preparation." During his three minutes, Williams wanted to let his teammates know that they all had a say, regardless of their experience level, in how this season was about to unfold.

"Just having guys step up and let people know that even if you're not a big-time name or not a team captain, everyone on this team has a voice," Williams told NJ Advance Media on Monday night, summarizing his message from that players-only meeting.

Williams believes his words about everyone taking ownership made an impact, as the rebuilding Jets try to put back-to-back, five-win seasons behind them.

"I think that motivated the guys a lot," he said. "In practice last week, preparing for this game, if something didn't go right, we would restart the drill. It wasn't from the coaches. It was from the players. I think that's what is going to take us a long way, is when the players start to take ownership of the team and not just the coaches."

Morris Claiborne, the Jets' seventh-year cornerback, raved about Williams' speech to the team.

"You could just feel his passion for the game, his love for the game," Claiborne told NJ Advance Media. "You could just tell he's not a selfish individual. He wants everybody to succeed, because he knows when we're all together, that's how we win.

"Leo is still pretty young. He's got a long, long career ahead of him. Him speaking is something he doesn't really do. He just lets his play speak for him. But him getting up and saying the stuff he said, you could really feel that it was genuine and it was from the heart."

Claiborne has surely seen his share of phony, big-talking leaders over the years. But words like Williams' hit home "when guys know that it's real," Claiborne said.

"A lot of guys came up to me afterward, gave me good feedback, and told me that they appreciated me stepping up and saying something," Williams said. "Because they actually felt where I was coming from. They said they felt like it was from the heart. I think that's what's good about me not saying stuff all the time, is that when I do say something, they're like, 'Oh, he means it.'"

Williams, 24, was just 20 when the Jets drafted him sixth overall in 2015. The Jets' defensive line featured established players, Sheldon Richardson and Muhammad Wilkerson, both now gone. So it took time for Williams to grow into a leadership role. Now, nobody on the Jets' defensive line has been with the organization as long as Williams.

"Dang, that's crazy," he said. "I've definitely been stepping up a lot more this year."

Williams has gotten vocal leadership pointers from Steve McLendon, the Jets' 10th-year defensive tackle. At 32, McLendon is the Jets' second-oldest player, and their oldest defender. So Williams is a lot more comfortable now speaking in front of his teammates -- and delivering messages that matter -- even if that role didn't always come naturally for him.

"I'm comfortable, especially because I know all these guys," he said. "It would be different if I was standing up in front of people I didn't really know."

Darryl Slater may be reached at dslater@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DarrylSlater. Find NJ.com Jets on Facebook.