Skilled Starters Offense

The Lions have made numerous moves offensively this year, so let’s see who is going to be starting at the skilled positions.

The Lions have one running back returning this year, Kevin Smith. Smith will definitely be starting and should be very productive. He averaged 4.1 yards last year and had 976 yards with 8 touchdowns. He was fourth in the league for rookies in yards and that is with a pass happy offense and underachieving offensive line. The Lions made improvements to the line and will have more focus on the running game. Look for Smith to have 1200 yards and about 10 touchdowns. Maurice Morris will play backup to Smith and will only get a few carries a game. Morris was picked up from free agency this off-season. Morris played his first 7 seasons in Seattle before being released. Detroit’s third back position will be filled via draft. The Lions took Aaron Brown out of TCU in the 6 th round. Brown will mostly be a special teams guy.

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The Lions wide receivers have had a change this year letting go of Shaun McDonald and Mike Furrey, bringing in Bryant Johnson, Dennis Northcutt and drafting Derrick Williams. Calvin Johnson is going to be the top wide receiver this year. He is looking to improve on a pro-bowl caliber season. Posting 78 receptions for 1331 yards and 12 touchdowns. The number 2 spot is up for grabs. Bryant Johnson and Dennis Northcutt will fight for this position. I see Bryant Johnson winning the starting role and will be a nice compliment to Calvin. Northcutt will be a number three and rookie Derrick Williams will be the number 4 receiver.

Detroit drafted Brandon Pettigrew at the number 20 spot and he is marked in to start at tight end. Pettigrew has the blocking and pass catching to make him an every down player. I have said it before and I will say it again, Dan Gronowski is going to be the second tight end in the starting line-up. All of the injuries at tight end right now are increasing Gronowski’s exposure to the coaches and showing them what kind of player he is. So far the coaching staff is very impressed.

This should give some idea on how the Lions are going to look this year. Hopefully everyone stays healthy and we can see all of the changes in full affect.

Look for Defensive Starters next week.

By: Patrick Stone
ProFootball-fans.com Detroit Lions Correspondent