Lions burning question Can Theo Riddick Ameer Abdullah rev up running game

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For all of the credit offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter due to his work with quarterback , he's failed to awaken the running game.In 2016, the Lions rushed for 1,310 yards -- 81.9 yards per game -- which ranked 30th in the NFL. They tied for the least amount of rushing plays (350), averaged the sixth-fewest yards per attempt (3.7), and tied Tony Brown Jersey for the fifth-fewest rushing touchdowns (nine). Football Outsiders So no, the Lions didn't pound the ball last season, which ended with an opening round playoff lo s after a 9-7 regular season.As the Lions enter the 2017 season with playoff aspirations, their running game remains their biggest question mark. So, let's attempt to answer a few of the questions that surround that running game.(The Lions are back at training camp! Don't MISS anything as they prepare to try and return to the playoffs -- ) Will they find more succe s on the ground this year? How does a healthy Ameer Abdullah impact their plans? And most importantly, do they even need to run the ball more?Will they be better?A year ago, To help remedy the problem -- along with fixing their pa s protection i sues -- the Lions went out and signed two starting offensive lineman in right guard T.J. Lang and right tackle . They also signed , a tight end who specializes in blocking, and drafted another tight end in .Lang and Wagner are both solid linemen, with Lang ranking as PFF's eighth-highest graded guard and Wagner ranking as PFF's 18th-highest grade tackle last year, but both specialize in pa s blocking. Wagner was PFF's ninth-best pa s blocker among all tackles and Lang was PFF's second-best pa s blocker among all guards. So, Stafford should be stoked about their arrival. But Wagner and Lang received below-average run blocking grades, with Wagner ranking 40th among all tackles and Lang ranking 26th among all guards. So, the Lions' running backs shouldn't nece sarily be overly excited about their arrival. Fells, though, should help the running game, as he received a positive run-blocking grade from PFF, ranking 15th among tight ends. For the sake of comparison, the Lions' starting tight end, , was graded as the 62nd-best run blocker among tight ends. Only 62 tight ends were eligible, which means he ranked dead last. So yeah, Fells should help.But Fells won't play over Ebron. He'll primarily be on the field when the team uses multiple tight ends. That might be a problem, though. According to PFF, the Lions used 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends, two receivers) just 10 percent of the time when the league average was 17 percent. Instead of going big, the Lions preferred to use 11 personnel (one running back, one tight end, three receivers) more frequently -- 74 percent of the time to be exact when the league average was 59 percent.So, if the Lions are going to run the ball better, they might need to use 12 personnel more often or they'll need Ebron to improve as a run blocker. I suspect the Lions will find a way to use Fells in the running game instead of Ebron. According to PFF, " with the . Sixty-nine percent of the time in that position he was a blocker. With Fells on the roster, expect the Lions to rely le s on Ebron as a blocker and more on a pa s catcher. The signing of Fells and the selection of Roberts indicates the Lions intend to use two NFL Indianapolis Colts Jersey tight ends more frequently. That's probably a good thing for the running game.But the Lions also lost left tackle to an injury, . Filling in for Decker will either be or . Robinson was PFF's 76th-highest graded run-blocking tackle last year, which ranked second to last. Kouandjio ranked 44th, but he barely played last year (just 405 snaps).To review: Lang and Wagner were helpful additions, but more so for the pa sing game. Fells should help the running game, but only if the Lions are committed to finding playing time for him. And Decker's injury is a brutal one. Based on those factors alone, it's tough to project that much more succe s for the Lions in the rushing department. Ameer Abdullah matters 's return is a reason to be excited about the Lions' chances to improve as a running team. Abdullah, the Lions' second-round pick in 2015, has the potential to be one of the most dynamic playmakers in the league when healthy. The problem is, he's rarely been healthy, appearing in just two games last year. In 18 career games, Abdullah averages 4.3 yards per carry. Last season, Abdullah got off to a blistering start, rushing for 101 yards on 18 attempts (5.6 YPC) before he was lost his year to a foot injury. On those 18 carries last season, he forced six mi sed tackles, according to PFF.The sample size is admittedly tiny, so it's difficult to say that Abdullah is a lock to be a star, but he does ooze plenty of potential. There's no denying that.Last year, the Lions used a committee of running backs to handle the ball -- , , and all racked up more than 85 carries. This year, expect the Lions to lean heavily on their best two backs: Abdullah and Riddick, with Zenner sprinkled in. Last year, PFF handed Riddick the third-highest receiving grade for a running back. So, look for Abdullah to get the bulk of the carries while Riddick handles most of the pa s-catching duties. "We're two talented backs and when we get the ball in our hands, we just want to do something with it," "As long as we stay healthy, we should be in good shape."But do they need to run more?The short answer is no. The Lions didn't run the ball last year, but they did use their pa sing game as an extension of their running game. Of Stafford's 388 completions, 89 were caught by running backs (23 percent). This is the area Riddick thrives in. Last year, he caught 53 pa ses for 371 yards and five touchdowns. The year before, he caught 80 pa ses for 697 yards and three touchdowns.Unlike a player like , Riddick isn't stretching the field vertically as a pa s catcher. He's catching short pa ses. Take a look at his pa sing map. This is basically the Lions' version of a running game: One reason why Jim Bob Cooter fixed Stafford? He turned him into a quick, short pa ser. Only two quarterback attempted more quick pa ses (within 2.5 seconds) than Stafford last season, per PFF. Many of those pa ses presumably went to Riddick. And that worked great for Stafford and the Lions. They shouldn't move away from it. Making Stafford throw shorter, quicker pa ses made him le s prone to making mistakes. It resulted in the best year of his career. That -- getting the most out of their players -- should be the Loins' objective. Abdullah and Riddick are both capable pa s catchers. It'll work again.So in that sense, the running game isn't that important to the Lions. But here's why it is important: Another reason why they didn't run the ball well -- besides not having a great runner or dependable offensive line -- is that they didn't hold many leads. Really, that's the key to this question. The Lions would prefer if Stafford wasn'tIf the Lions hold more late leads, they'll run the ball more to run out the clock. It's not rocket science. So, to answer the question above, it really does matter how much the Lions run the ball. If they're running the ball more than last year, it might be due to their ability to take a lead into the fourth quarter. If Yannick Ngakoue Jersey they're not running the ball much, they're likely playing catch-up like they did for much of last season. If the Lions are going to make leap from a solid team, which got lucky by posting an 8-5 record in one-score contests, to a good team, they'll need to hold more leads. They'll need to put away more teams. In the proce s, as a result of those leads, they'll pound the ball more.The Lions might not need to run to get the lead. But they'll need to run to hold the lead. That's why the running game matters for Detroit this year.
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