Calvin Johnson Injury: Lions WR a total toss-up
Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson watches the Lions warm up before game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Johnson is inactive for the game with an injury. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Detroit Lions WR Calvin Johnson was a surprise inactive last week, and the knee injury could keep him out of this week too. Johnson is fully expected to be a game-time decision for this week’s game against the Cleveland Browns, and it sounds like he is a full-blown game-time decision with very little indicating that he will/won’t play. Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reports that Calvin Johnson will be a game-time decision, and he takes the uncertainty a step further by writing that there is “no word yet” and that there might not be a report on his end until shortly before the inactives are released.
It’s a huge deal for both the Detroit Lions and fantasy owners, with the impact on fantasy owners being obvious. The impact on the Detroit Lions is just as obvious, too, especially since the Lions offense sputtered to the tune of nine points against a subpar Green Bay Packers secondary last week. Calvin Johnson is extremely important to the Lions, and he is set to face off against one of the marquee cornerbacks in this league in Joe Haden, who shut down A.J. Green (maybe the only receiver who can even draw a close comparison to Johnson in terms of athletic ability) this year.
If Johnson is a no-go, then the Lions will be forced to roll with the trio Ryan Broyles, Kris Durham, and Patrick Edwards. Expect to see a lot of TE Brandon Pettigrew in that case, as Pettigrew has been targeted quite a bit recently by Matthew Stafford. We can only hope that we receive good word on Johnson’s status, but he did reportedly look good during Friday’s practice and has more of a chance of playing today than not.
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