We’ve been having fun with this start, bench and cut thing we’re doing with the Detroit Lions. So far we’ve done one for the secondary and one for the defensive line. Now it’s time to head over to the offense and make sense of the 12 receivers that the Lions currently have on their roster.
Start
This portion should be somewhat easy. Amon-Ra St. Brown is one of the best receivers in the league and is now one of the highest paid guys too. He’s starting. He’ll continue to work out of the slot.
On the outside you’ll have Jameson Williams. Lions head coach Dan Campbell called him the most improved player in the spring and said he’s a man on a mission. He’ll take that number two spot.
Then at the three there’s Donovan Peoples-Jones. the expectation is that he’ll play a role that was very similar to what Josh Reynolds had been doing for the Lions. That tracks since Peoples-Jones has a similar playing style and athleticism.
Bench
Here’s where it gets really difficult. Last year the Lions had six receivers on the roster. There’s three spots left and nine guys to choose from. One of the choices is really easy. Kalif Raymond is going to make the team and we know that. He’s a solid guy who can work in on trick plays and he’s the teams punt returner.
After that it’s pretty up in the air. You would think that Antoine Green would be a lock to make the team, but we haven’t seen anything out of him since the preseason last year and that wasn’t anything that would blow you away.
But since the Lions kept him on the roster all year long instead of putting him on the practice squad, we’re moving him into one of the spots for now. We’ll see what happens at camp.
The final spot is challenging. There’s rookie Isaiah Williams who has a lot of yards after the catch ability, but is pretty small and feels a little redundant with Kalif Raymond on the team.
Then there’s Tre’Quan Smith who spent years with Dan Campbell in New Orleans and was a pretty big part of that teams offense for five seasons. He has some X receiver ability.
Maurice Alexander can be a kick returner and Kaden Davis can too. Then there’s Daurice Fountain. The former fifth-round pick has been good in the preseason, but hasn’t found a roster spot anywhere yet.
Right now I have to go with Smith just based off the track record and the connection to Campbell. We’ll see what happens at camp.
Cut
That means Alexander, Davis, Williams, Fountain, Kennedy and Calhoun are all cut.
Alexander, Fountain and Kennedy should all make the practice squad for their various abilities. Calhoun, Williams and Davis are likely to catch on elsewhere.