Detroit Lions: Will Offense Be Better Without Calvin Johnson?
By Nick Ziegler
The Detroit Lions lost one of the best wide receivers of all-time to retirement this offseason, but will the offense be better without Calvin Johnson.
Wide receiver Calvin Johnson will be in Canton, Ohio one day after his great NFL career, but life must go on for the Detroit Lions. Even though Johnson is one of the greatest wide receivers of all-time, the Lions were unable to turn that into any team success.
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In nine seasons, Johnson totaled 731 receptions, 11,619 receiving yards, and 83 receiving touchdowns. 2012 was the best season for Johnson, as he totaled 122 receptions and a ridiculous 1,974 receiving yards.
No one player will be able to replace the production of Johnson, and the Lions will try to have a more balanced attack in their passing game. On a recent appearance on Sirius XM NFL Radio with Alex Marvez and Kirk Morrison, Lions’ quarterback Matthew Stafford said that Johnson is a once in a lifetime player, but that the offense might be tougher to guard without him.
“I think we’re going to do it a little bit differently than we have in the past,” Stafford said on the show via Pro Football Talk. “Obviously, we used to feature Calvin and everybody kinda got there’s after that. It’s gonna, I think, be tougher for defenses in a certain way that they don’t know who we’re going to. There’s no guy to key in on. We’re probably just going to spread the ball around a bunch, a bunch of guys are gonna get a ton of catches and we’re gonna be alright.”
It is shocking to think that a team without Johnson would be tougher on defenses, but Stafford believes that the depth the Lions have can make up for it. This offseason, the Lions added most notably Marvin Jones and Jeremy Kerley in free agency. Neither of them are star wide receivers by any means, but they are both proven players.
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The departure of Johnson will make Golden Tate the new No.1 wide receiver in Detroit. Tate has played very well for the Lions the past two seasons, as he totaled 99 receptions, 1,331 receiving yards, and four receiving touchdowns in 2014. Last season, Tate had another good season, as he totaled 90 receptions, 813 receiving yards, and six receiving touchdowns.
In addition to the talent at wide receiver, the Lions will also hope that Eric Ebron will take another step forward in his third season. Last season, Ebron played very well for the Lions, as he totaled 47 receptions, 537 receiving yards, and five receiving touchdowns.
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With a good group of weapons around him, it will all come down to Stafford to orchestrate the offense. Not having Johnson will be a huge adjustment for Stafford, who has played with Johnson for his entire career. At times, Johnson has bailed out Stafford on some throws that normal wide receivers wouldn’t be able to catch.
Stafford will be entering his eighth season with the Lions, and 2016 will be his toughest season yet without Johnson. It will be interesting to see if Stafford is right and the improved depth at wide receiver and tight end will actually make the Lions’ offense better without Johnson.