Detroit Lions 3 bold predictions for the 2022 NFL season

Detroit Lions bold prediction no. 3: WR DJ Chark returns to the Pro Bowl

A year ago at this time, the Detroit Lions had the worst-looking wide receiver group in the entire NFL. And they undoubtedly knew that to be true.

The Lions made a trade with the Denver Broncos to get promising young player Trinity Benson to take at least a dart throw at the position, but it was a series of other developments that actually led to the Lions assembling a rather impressive group of receivers for position coach Antwan Randle-El in very short order.

The Lions saw the emergence of rookie Amon-Ra St. Brown, a fourth-round pick out of USC who played outstanding last year. Jared Goff’s productivity and efficiency as a passer also skyrocketed once the team acquired his former Rams teammate Josh Reynolds, a guy who was brought back in 2022 as well.

The Lions also brought in former Pro Bowl DJ Chark in 2022 free agency, one of the best and most underrated moves any team made this offseason for my money. Chark signed a one-year “prove-it” deal with the Lions and I think he’s going to cash in big-time. Chark was once a Pro Bowl receiver with the Jacksonville Jaguars before their QB situation was even close to being sorted out, and now he has the chance to be a major weapon for Jared Goff.

Goff proved last year that he can spread the ball around and even if he’s not a top-tier player at the QB position, I think he’s going to do just fine with the weapons at his disposal. In particular, I think DJ Chark is going to have a monster year in Detroit.

It’s hard to believe that more teams weren’t all over trying to sign Chark this year, especially considering there are so many playoff-ready teams in need of wide receivers. I think a lot of NFL franchises are going to regret passing on the opportunity to get Chark on a rather reasonable one-year deal.

Their loss will be the Detroit Lions’ gain as Chark returns to the Pro Bowl this season.