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RB D’Andre Swift, CHI (2 Viewers)

DetroitLions.com's Tim Twentyman believes D'Andre Swift will be a "big part" of the Lions' passing offense in 2022. 

Twentyman said Swift appeared a little bigger and stronger in Detroit's minicamps, regularly burning linebackers in coverage with shifty route running and reliable hands. Swift led all NFL running backs in receptions and targets (and was fourth in running back pass routes) last year before he suffered a shoulder injury on Thanksgiving -- an injury that cost him a month of action. Swift led all running backs in expected receiving fantasy points from Week 1 to Week 11. He should once again eat up underneath targets for Jared Goff in 2022, making him an excellent pick in PPR formats. 

SOURCE: DetroitLions.com

Jun 14, 2022, 9:05 AM ET

 
Swift is shaping up to be a no-brainer for me in the second round of drafts this year.  He has a lot working in his favor:

* The Lions offensive line has quietly become very strong, on the verge of being elite.

* Adding Chark & Jameson (whenever he gets on the field) will help create space for Swift.

* His QB will continue to check down to him at perhaps the highest rate in the NFL.

* The Lions are at the Jets and Panthers in weeks 14 & 15, respectively, and have a very juicy matchup at home against the Bears in week 16.

Swift is also 23 and ascending. I saw an interesting stat - the last 5 overall RB1's have been 25 years or younger. I do think Swift has that sort of upside in his range of outcomes. Obviously, the question is his availability, but playing the game of who is and isn't going to miss time isn't one that I'm generally interested in.  So much to like here and a bet I'm willing to make.

 
Swift is shaping up to be a no-brainer for me in the second round of drafts this year.  He has a lot working in his favor:

* The Lions offensive line has quietly become very strong, on the verge of being elite.

* Adding Chark & Jameson (whenever he gets on the field) will help create space for Swift.

* His QB will continue to check down to him at perhaps the highest rate in the NFL.

* The Lions are at the Jets and Panthers in weeks 14 & 15, respectively, and have a very juicy matchup at home against the Bears in week 16.

Swift is also 23 and ascending. I saw an interesting stat - the last 5 overall RB1's have been 25 years or younger. I do think Swift has that sort of upside in his range of outcomes. Obviously, the question is his availability, but playing the game of who is and isn't going to miss time isn't one that I'm generally interested in.  So much to like here and a bet I'm willing to make.
I’m with you on Swift. Sure, he’s been banged up his 1st two season. But that doesn’t mean he’s automatically going to get hurt. I could see him break out bigtime this year, and be a top 4 pick in 2023 redraft leagues. If I’m picking 9-12, I’m absolutely looking to get Swift in the 2nd. 

 
I’m not sure what this means. 
Duce Staley on Swift:  

So this offseason, Staley gave Swift a challenge:

Hey man, you’ve got to fight through some things.

The objective is clear. Staley needs Swift to stay as healthy as possible, but he can’t back down when the relatively minor bumps and bruises come.

“We all know there’s a difference in being injured and hurt,” Staley explained. “As soon as you step in this building as a running back—Day 1 of training camp—you’re not going to feel the same. So there are going to be some things he’s going to have to fight through, and he’s going to have to work through that.”

 
Duce Staley on Swift:  

So this offseason, Staley gave Swift a challenge:

Hey man, you’ve got to fight through some things.

The objective is clear. Staley needs Swift to stay as healthy as possible, but he can’t back down when the relatively minor bumps and bruises come.

“We all know there’s a difference in being injured and hurt,” Staley explained. “As soon as you step in this building as a running back—Day 1 of training camp—you’re not going to feel the same. So there are going to be some things he’s going to have to fight through, and he’s going to have to work through that.”
Have to think Swift bulking up this offseason related to these comments by Duce. Just hopes it doesn't sap any of his explosiveness.

My main concern for Swift outside of injuries is his poor performance in running the ball, particularly between the tackles (PFF grades bear this out). While he doesn't need to make a living there and is better in space, the less success he has between the tackles, the more he's going to be taken off the field and spelled by Williams/Reynolds.

 
Have to think Swift bulking up this offseason related to these comments by Duce. Just hopes it doesn't sap any of his explosiveness.

My main concern for Swift outside of injuries is his poor performance in running the ball, particularly between the tackles (PFF grades bear this out). While he doesn't need to make a living there and is better in space, the less success he has between the tackles, the more he's going to be taken off the field and spelled by Williams/Reynolds.
I’d trade a little speed for durability. I’m intrigued by what Swift has to offer this year, especially as he might catch 80 balls. PPR gold. 

 
Vegas has the lions as a 6.5 win team on the O/U.  That’s a substantial bump up from 3.5 last year.

7 wins seems high. Not impossible, but I probably wouldn’t bet this one. 
IF, and it's a big IF, Williamson is available after week 6 I can understand the optimism by the book makers. The defense should be much improved. I think the offense has a lot of nice complimentary pieces and if they had one play maker to loosen things up it would make all the difference.

Last year, they landed exactly on 3.5... but they lost 5 games by 4 points or less and some of those were crazy circumstances at the end. Plus, they ended the season with 3 wins and 3 losses down the stretch. I had my doubts about the coaching hire but I was impressed with how hard this team played at 0-8. That team felt like they were still completely bought in. 

Full disclosure I've always been a closet DET fan so maybe this is just optimism on my part.

 
IF, and it's a big IF, Williamson is available after week 6 I can understand the optimism by the book makers. The defense should be much improved. I think the offense has a lot of nice complimentary pieces and if they had one play maker to loosen things up it would make all the difference.

Last year, they landed exactly on 3.5... but they lost 5 games by 4 points or less and some of those were crazy circumstances at the end. Plus, they ended the season with 3 wins and 3 losses down the stretch. I had my doubts about the coaching hire but I was impressed with how hard this team played at 0-8. That team felt like they were still completely bought in. 

Full disclosure I've always been a closet DET fan so maybe this is just optimism on my part.
As I’d picked up ARSB off FA in redraft, I was watching quite a bit of Lions football down the stretch & I echo your sentiments.

They played hard, and with all the injuries to Hock/Swift/defensive players/etc, I was very impressed with their potency down the stretch.

i see DET as a team on the rise. Through the adversity last year they learned how good ARSB is, and there’s no putting that genie back in the bottle. A healthy swift & hock will go a long way, and Williamson will eventually be back - that’ll be a pretty exciting offense. 

 
Detroit had 7 different WR's that saw at least 50 game snaps last year.  At the beginning of the season only 1 of them had more than 20 career receptions.  They picked that guy up off the street in November.  They were down 2 Pro Bowl O-Lineman by midseason and Swift and Hocks both missed about 5 games.  I have the Lions winning 8 games this year.

 
Lions are underdogs in 14 of their first 15 games. Negative game scripts could be a positive considering how much Goff likes to dump it off to his backs.
Beginning to wonder about that, though. 

RB Targets (A Lynn / MCDC split):

1st 8 G - 20, 9, 9, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12 - 83=10.4 /g   
Last 9 G - 6, 6, 10, 5, 2, 4, 6, 7, 7 - 53=5.9/g

Some caveats: Goff missed 3G, the 2 target game they played their 4th & 5th string RBs. They were trying to get away from dump offs and push more downfield when Goof was healthy.

Swift played 66 snaps v Steelers (33-130 & 6 targets); he showed up on the injury report on Wednesday with a sprained shoulder which he reinjured 10 days later. The last 8 G he missed 4 G took only 113 offensive snaps (447 snaps his first 9 G.)

The sprained shoulder is a huge reason Swift had only 21 targets for 15-37 in 5G after the playcaller change.

Ben Johnson is a very bright OC and has been studying Goff’s 2017 & 2018. It won’t look like MCDC’s 2-TE 6-OL jumbo formations. They want to feature Swift again, but it might not be 120+ targets like he was on pace for the first half of 2021.

 
I’m with you on Swift. Sure, he’s been banged up his 1st two season. But that doesn’t mean he’s automatically going to get hurt. I could see him break out bigtime this year, and be a top 4 pick in 2023 redraft leagues. If I’m picking 9-12, I’m absolutely looking to get Swift in the 2nd. 
I think his ADP is 14 (according to FBG), so if you have the 9 or 10 pick and you want him, you have to grab him in the 1st.

 
I think his ADP is 14 (according to FBG), so if you have the 9 or 10 pick and you want him, you have to grab him in the 1st.
Yeah - I’ve started mocking a bit & he’s  consistently there at the turn. Can’t think of a player with more upside there.

Swift/Adams, Swift/Diggs, Swift/Lamb all seem like a nice way to start a PPR draft. 

 
I have Swift 9th overall PPR.  I love the O-line, I like the playmakers and the schedule sets up for multiple shootouts.
rn I have my (full PPR) Tiers as:

RB

1. Taylor, Eckler, CMC

2. Cook, Harris, Henry, Mixon, Swift

3. Jones, Chubb, Williams, Fournette, Kamara, Barkley, Connor 

WR

1. Kupp, Jefferson, Chase

2. Adams, Diggs, Lamb, Evans, Hill

TE

1. Kelce, Andrews

That should be close to the consensus first two rounds but ADP may shift over the summer.

 
rn I have my (full PPR) Tiers as:

RB

1. Taylor, Eckler, CMC

2. Cook, Harris, Henry, Mixon, Swift

3. Jones, Chubb, Williams, Fournette, Kamara, Barkley, Connor 

WR

1. Kupp, Jefferson, Chase

2. Adams, Diggs, Lamb, Evans, Hill

TE

1. Kelce, Andrews

That should be close to the consensus first two rounds but ADP may shift over the summer.
Very similar to my tiers. Can’t help but love the value at the 1st turn.

In my league we do Kentucky Derby Style, so we pick our own draft position when the name is drawn. I’m very tempted to take 11–12 regardless of where I pull.

12/13/36 has a very good chance to outperform 1/24 this year. Of course 25 > 36 bya sizable margin. Still worth mocking there to see how it looks. 

 
Solid take.  I am higher on Kamara because I think his case will get kicked down the road.  I see Swift and Kamara as very similar for this season.  Both have QB's that don't get enough respect.  Both have O-lines that suffered a lot of injuries last year.  Both have WR rooms that were terrible last year, but significantly improved this year.

 
Only three RB's averaged over 18.3 points per start last year PPR.  Swift was at 18.6 through 10 games, then got hurt early in game 11.  Kamara averaged 20.2 in the 6 full games he played with Winston.  The only question for me is how much will they play?

 
rn I have my (full PPR) Tiers as:

RB

1. Taylor, Eckler, CMC

2. Cook, Harris, Henry, Mixon, Swift

3. Jones, Chubb, Williams, Fournette, Kamara, Barkley, Connor 

WR

1. Kupp, Jefferson, Chase

2. Adams, Diggs, Lamb, Evans, Hill

TE

1. Kelce, Andrews

That should be close to the consensus first two rounds but ADP may shift over the summer.
Nice,  I am early in my process but am close to you. My first thoughts are to bump Dalvin up to tier 1, Aaron Jones to tier 2.  Adams and Diggs are still tier 1 for me. Kelce is the only tier 1 TE. 

 
Nice,  I am early in my process but am close to you. My first thoughts are to bump Dalvin up to tier 1, Aaron Jones to tier 2.  Adams and Diggs are still tier 1 for me. Kelce is the only tier 1 TE. 


  • Cook has a similar risk to Swift; the best ability is availability. Cook has missed 12, 5, 2, 2 and 3 games, Swift has missed 3 and 4 in his two seasons. It's a pretty small ding for me - only 7 of the top 24 played 17 games, 5 of the Top 24 played 16 the year before.
  • fm The Athletic mailbag yesterday: Last year, Dillon put up 1,116 total yards (just under Jones’ 1,190 total yards, so there’s no way he did that in the two-game Jones absence). These two combined for 444 touches last year, with Jones getting 223 and Dillon getting 221. Based on the rest of the roster, it’s difficult to imagine either of these players getting less work. Both should be big time targets in your drafts. Currently, most sites have Jones’ ADP in the second round and Dillon in the fourth. I’d probably push for Jones over Dillon due to the receiving upside, especially in full PPR settings, but don’t sleep on Dillon getting more looks in the passing game, too. He didn’t get much work last year, but he was very efficient: 36 targets, 34 catches for 313 yards. If Jones misses time, Dillon is going to kill it for fantasy players. If Jones doesn’t miss time, he’ll still hit ADP, just not exceed it. So again, both are worth targeting. I’m just leaning a bit toward Jones.
  • "Who is the WR4" has been an interesting debate the last few months. I think more people are probably coming around to why the Carr-to-Adams connection could be one of the biggest stories of 2022.
  • Andrews is 6 years younger and outpaced him by 35 points last year. But you're probably right.
 
  • "Who is the WR4" has been an interesting debate the last few months. I think more people are probably coming around to why the Carr-to-Adams connection could be one of the biggest stories of 2022.
i don’t see Adams being as good on the Raiders. I’d happily take him as my WR1 in the early 2nd - not saying he'll suck by any stretch. 

But he was hyper targeted in GB, his receiver room wasn’t as good as Renfrow/Waller (Lazard/MVS/Tonyan) and the Raiders are in a division with better secondaries/defenses than Adams faced in the Lions, Vikes, & Bears.

I think Adams will have a fine year, but I could see either Diggs or Lamb outproducing him. 

 
Very similar to my tiers. Can’t help but love the value at the 1st turn.

In my league we do Kentucky Derby Style, so we pick our own draft position when the name is drawn. I’m very tempted to take 11–12 regardless of where I pull.

12/13/36 has a very good chance to outperform 1/24 this year. Of course 25 > 36 bya sizable margin. Still worth mocking there to see how it looks. 
Always found it different drafting from the 12/13 (or 11/14) slot. You pick. You pick again. And then you wait 23 picks to go again. Runs start, end, and start again. While I realize you have to let a draft come to you, when I am in that spot, I find it beneficial to map out  (so to speak) my draft and take the guys I want because they simply will not be there 23 picks later. 

Back to the topic at hand--I have no problem grabbing Swift at 10 and then a top WR (one of Lamb, Adams or Diggs--probably Lamb, and trust me I hate the Cowboys) at 15.

 
  • Cook has a similar risk to Swift; the best ability is availability. Cook has missed 12, 5, 2, 2 and 3 games, Swift has missed 3 and 4 in his two seasons. It's a pretty small ding for me - only 7 of the top 24 played 17 games, 5 of the Top 24 played 16 the year before.
The difference for me is Dalvin has shown a ceiling we haven't seen from Swift. Swift has been at 13.1 and 13.8 ppg (half ppr). Dalvin has 4 seasons higher than that including a 22.6 season. Dalvin has health concerns but has shown when he is healthy, he can absolutely be a bellcow. Swift has never gotten that role and I am not sure he ever will. I also admit I am optimistic about the Vikings offense. I think it could be more uptempo, more pass friendly, create more RZ looks and feature Dalvin more as a receiver. 

  • fm The Athletic mailbag yesterday: Last year, Dillon put up 1,116 total yards (just under Jones’ 1,190 total yards, so there’s no way he did that in the two-game Jones absence). These two combined for 444 touches last year, with Jones getting 223 and Dillon getting 221. Based on the rest of the roster, it’s difficult to imagine either of these players getting less work. Both should be big time targets in your drafts. Currently, most sites have Jones’ ADP in the second round and Dillon in the fourth. I’d probably push for Jones over Dillon due to the receiving upside, especially in full PPR settings, but don’t sleep on Dillon getting more looks in the passing game, too. He didn’t get much work last year, but he was very efficient: 36 targets, 34 catches for 313 yards. If Jones misses time, Dillon is going to kill it for fantasy players. If Jones doesn’t miss time, he’ll still hit ADP, just not exceed it. So again, both are worth targeting. I’m just leaning a bit toward Jones. 
I really like the target upside Jones has this year with Adams gone. I think he could push to lead the league in RB targets. I don't disagree on Dillon either. Though I think Dillon is more of a checkdown receiver. Jones can run wheel routes, angle routes, etc. 

  • "Who is the WR4" has been an interesting debate the last few months. I think more people are probably coming around to why the Carr-to-Adams connection could be one of the biggest stories of 2022.
In the end, it's as simple as Adams is the best WR in the league and has an experienced pro at QB who threw for 4800 yards last year. Adams and Carr are friends, played together in college and I am sure pushed for this move to happen. I will take that action all day. I have Adams as my WR3, only behind Kupp and Jefferson. Maybe it's recency bias but the last couple elite WRs who have moved teams have done well out the gate but I am not scared off by the new location. 

  • Andrews is 6 years younger and outpaced him by 35 points last year. But you're probably right.
I think we saw Andrews best possible outcome last year. I doubt the Ravens will throw the ball as much this season. We know Kelce's upside isn't just overall TE1 but overall WR1. Maybe losing Hill causes too much attention to get shifted to Kelce and maybe he does lose a step with his age. I still think his upside is just way higher than Andrews. Prime Gronk was probably the only other TE that had the ceiling Kelce has. 

i don’t see Adams being as good on the Raiders. I’d happily take him as my WR1 in the early 2nd - not saying he'll suck by any stretch. 

But he was hyper targeted in GB, his receiver room wasn’t as good as Renfrow/Waller (Lazard/MVS/Tonyan) and the Raiders are in a division with better secondaries/defenses than Adams faced in the Lions, Vikes, & Bears.

I think Adams will have a fine year, but I could see either Diggs or Lamb outproducing him. 
I am not fading Adams because of Renfrow. Adams is the best receiver in the league, he is still going to be targeted relentlessly. The division the Raiders play in is the other reason I am bullish on Adams. The Raiders get 1/3 of the Raiders schedule is against Mahomes, Herbert and Wilson likely in nice weather each time. There could be a whole ton of points scored in those games. That is truly the wild west division right now. 

 
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Always found it different drafting from the 12/13 (or 11/14) slot. You pick. You pick again. And then you wait 23 picks to go again. Runs start, end, and start again. While I realize you have to let a draft come to you, when I am in that spot, I find it beneficial to map out  (so to speak) my draft and take the guys I want because they simply will not be there 23 picks later. 
Mocking a lot can help with this. Have a plan. Have a list of players you’d like to have who usually falls there. But be prepared to throw that out the window if a value slides to you. 👍🏼

It’s basically no different than drafting 1-2. Same number of picks between your picks. 

 
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Always found it different drafting from the 12/13 (or 11/14) slot. You pick. You pick again. And then you wait 23 picks to go again. Runs start, end, and start again. While I realize you have to let a draft come to you, when I am in that spot, I find it beneficial to map out  (so to speak) my draft and take the guys I want because they simply will not be there 23 picks later. 
This is why I prefer to be on an end.  I can actually plan the draft better and if you trust your evaluations you have a more cohesive team because of it.  When I am in the middle I find I am just in the middle and the draft is dictated to me and I am just reacting.  Being on an end allows me to force the action sometimes.  I prefer that.  

 
The Raiders get 1/3 of the Raiders schedule is against Mahomes, Herbert and Wilson likely in nice weather each time. There could be a whole ton of points scored in those games. That is truly the wild west division right now. 
that’s certainly the narrative I keep hearing - lots of shootouts, etc,

But the Broncos and Chargers are both top 10 defenses. Chargers arguably a top 5.

And the Chiefs offense is kind of TBD after losing Hill. MVS is a 1-trick pony, JuJu is a fine slot guy but also limited in terms of how they can use him. Hardman is what he is at this point. Their rookie could be good, but who knows. Kelce is Kelce.

Like I said, I’m not fading Adams. I think he’s priced correctly early 2nd. I just think his team move was a slight downgrade. Mahomes > Carr, easily. Not sure what kind of balance the Raiders will have. I suspect they’ll run Jacobs into the ground in his contract year. And if they want to win those AFC west battles, they’d best play ball control and be able to run clock, because those are 3 dangerous offenses that can bite ya.

Unless you’re saying you expect the raiders to be playing from behind a lot - which is also TBD.

WR4-6 seems fair though. I might grab Lamb for his monster upside, or Diggs since he didn’t move teams & seems ripe for a bounce-back. But it’s a 3-way coin flip. Maybe I’ll roll a 6-sided die & let the fates decide. 

 
This is why I prefer to be on an end.  I can actually plan the draft better and if you trust your evaluations you have a more cohesive team because of it.  When I am in the middle I find I am just in the middle and the draft is dictated to me and I am just reacting.  Being on an end allows me to force the action sometimes.  I prefer that.  
Exactly - sometimes you get to start those runs instead of falling victim to them.

My redraft is IDP, so it’s especially valid there. 5.01-5.08 is just too early to grab that DL1 or LB1. But 6.01 is the perfect spot to pop that IDP cherry. Not only do you get the best defensive player in the league, but by taking him, 7-8 other teams will always follow suit, assuring that offensive value slides to you at 7.12

:hifive:

 
Off topic but I love the 3 and 10 spots. You have the ability to predict the 1/2 or 11/12 picks (do they already have two RBs? QB? TE?). That helps you wait, snipe, and create runs all at once. 

 
Hard Knocks' winners and losers: Lions receivers stand out, D'Andre Swift stock dips after Episode 2

Excerpt:

Loser: D'Andre Swift

No one -- not even third-string quarterback David Blough, who fumbled away a potential preseason win -- got more flak in Episode 2 than the team's star running back. Duce Staley, Campbell's right-hand man, repeatedly touted Swift's upside as the lead back: "You can be the best in this league, you really can." But he was frustrated, if not livid, at the former second-rounder even more. First he suggested in coaches' meetings that Swift lacks the self-confidence, conviction and "dawg mentality" to break out. Then, in their preseason opener, he angrily pulled Swift from the game after two mediocre touches. Swift ultimately rebounded with a score, but no one should be surprised if Detroit keeps leaning on veteran No. 2 Jamaal Williams moving forward.
 
Vegas has the lions as a 6.5 win team on the O/U. That’s a substantial bump up from 3.5 last year.

7 wins seems high. Not impossible, but I probably wouldn’t bet this one.
IF, and it's a big IF, Williamson is available after week 6 I can understand the optimism by the book makers. The defense should be much improved. I think the offense has a lot of nice complimentary pieces and if they had one play maker to loosen things up it would make all the difference.

Last year, they landed exactly on 3.5... but they lost 5 games by 4 points or less and some of those were crazy circumstances at the end. Plus, they ended the season with 3 wins and 3 losses down the stretch. I had my doubts about the coaching hire but I was impressed with how hard this team played at 0-8. That team felt like they were still completely bought in.

Full disclosure I've always been a closet DET fan so maybe this is just optimism on my part.
I always root for the Lions.... on Thanksgiving.
 
I'm back and forth on Swift. He's talented. But word is they want to split carries, and I want nothing to do with RBBC.
But I think he has the ability to be a 3rd year stud.
 
Good things to look at...he has caught 108 balls his first two seasons including 62 last year

878 yds/10 scores, 40+ catches his rookie year and that coach was fired.
1,069 yds and 7 TDs with 62 rec sprinkled in and he seems to battle injuries quite a bit hist first two seasons. Jamaal Williams is a solid back up but he is not a starting RB, Swift has a clear path to many touches.

108 receptions and 17 TDs in 2 seasons and we haven't seen his best year. 160 touches then 213, another 40-50 would get us to about 250-260+, that seems reasonable with a chance for a lot more. Don't discount a very average set of Wide Receivers so far and a veteran QB that is fighting for his job and career right now.

I like Swift a lot this season.
 
D’Andre Swift says Duce Staley has him feeling like the sky is the limit. Lions RB says his personal goals for 2022 are “1,000 (rushing) and 1,000 (receiving).”

MLive beat writer tweet
He also said he needs to learn the difference between pain and injury. I guess it depends on which side of the bed Staley gets out of.

The 7 missed games his first two years is annoying. Reminds me of Cook in that sense (who seems to always miss 2-5 G every year.)

Last year he suffered a Grade 2 Inguinal Groin Strain the first week of August. He missed all of preseason, was limited in practice until right before first game, and spent 6 more weeks on the injury report (every week he had limited practices.) Finally got to 100% which lasted exactly 4 G, sprained A/C shoulder joint, missed four, came back for the last two. Altogether, on the injury report / limited participant 19/23 weeks.

Personally I think the split with Jamaal was partially driven by the injuries. He had TDs of 43, 57, 63 - they really didn’t get splash chunk plays from anyone else. If he stays healthy, they know he’s their best playmaker.

BIG if though.
 
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D’Andre Swift says Duce Staley has him feeling like the sky is the limit. Lions RB says his personal goals for 2022 are “1,000 (rushing) and 1,000 (receiving).”

MLive beat writer tweet
He also said he needs to learn the difference between pain and injury. I guess it depends on which side of the bed Staley gets out of.

The 7 missed games his first two years is annoying. Reminds me of Cook in that sense (who seems to always miss 2-5 G every year.)

Last year he suffered a Grade 2 Inguinal Groin Strain the first week of August. He missed all of preseason, was limited in practice until right before first game, and spent 6 more weeks on the injury report (every week he had limited practices.) Finally got to 100% which lasted exactly 4 G, sprained A/C shoulder joint, missed four, came back for the last two. Altogether, on the injury report / limited participant 19/23 weeks.

Personally I think the split with Jamaal was partially driven by the injuries. He had TDs of 43, 57, 63 - they really didn’t get splash chunk plays from anyone else. If he stays healthy, they know he’s their best playmaker.

BIG if though.
Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't the Lions lose their Pro Bowl starting Center-Frank early last season and then the rookie Tackle should be improved going into his 2nd season. I feel the Lions Offense is going to be able to control the clock a lot better than last season. I saw some shades of Goff that looked promising. He's a veteran at this point, 2 organizations and still throws a pretty ball when he's accurate.

Improved OL, healthy TJ Hock at TE would help open up more of the offense. I think Chark will lead the receiving corp easily but understand if everyone isn't as enthused as I am.
 
D’Andre Swift says Duce Staley has him feeling like the sky is the limit. Lions RB says his personal goals for 2022 are “1,000 (rushing) and 1,000 (receiving).”

MLive beat writer tweet
He also said he needs to learn the difference between pain and injury. I guess it depends on which side of the bed Staley gets out of.

The 7 missed games his first two years is annoying. Reminds me of Cook in that sense (who seems to always miss 2-5 G every year.)

Last year he suffered a Grade 2 Inguinal Groin Strain the first week of August. He missed all of preseason, was limited in practice until right before first game, and spent 6 more weeks on the injury report (every week he had limited practices.) Finally got to 100% which lasted exactly 4 G, sprained A/C shoulder joint, missed four, came back for the last two. Altogether, on the injury report / limited participant 19/23 weeks.

Personally I think the split with Jamaal was partially driven by the injuries. He had TDs of 43, 57, 63 - they really didn’t get splash chunk plays from anyone else. If he stays healthy, they know he’s their best playmaker.

BIG if though.
Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't the Lions lose their Pro Bowl starting Center-Frank early last season and then the rookie Tackle should be improved going into his 2nd season. I feel the Lions Offense is going to be able to control the clock a lot better than last season. I saw some shades of Goff that looked promising. He's a veteran at this point, 2 organizations and still throws a pretty ball when he's accurate.

Improved OL, healthy TJ Hock at TE would help open up more of the offense. I think Chark will lead the receiving corp easily but understand if everyone isn't as enthused as I am.
They also were missing their third best 0L in Taylor Decker for half the season.
 
My only concern with Swift beyond injury is that Campbell/Staley seem to absolutely love Jamaal Williams. He may have a fraction of the talent Swift brings, but he's got that hard-nosed mentality the coaching staff lives and breathes. Not sure Swift has that makeup in him.
 
My only concern with Swift beyond injury is that Campbell/Staley seem to absolutely love Jamaal Williams. He may have a fraction of the talent Swift brings, but he's got that hard-nosed mentality the coaching staff lives and breathes. Not sure Swift has that makeup in him.
They do seem to appreciate the energy Williams brings to the team, and that energy is probably a good thing for the offense in general. Additionally, if Williams is taking the more physically taxing reps, the grunt work per se, that could be a net positive for Swift, keeping him healthier, fresher and more dangerous when his number is called.
 
D’Andre Swift says Duce Staley has him feeling like the sky is the limit. Lions RB says his personal goals for 2022 are “1,000 (rushing) and 1,000 (receiving).”

MLive beat writer tweet
He also said he needs to learn the difference between pain and injury. I guess it depends on which side of the bed Staley gets out of.

The 7 missed games his first two years is annoying. Reminds me of Cook in that sense (who seems to always miss 2-5 G every year.)

Last year he suffered a Grade 2 Inguinal Groin Strain the first week of August. He missed all of preseason, was limited in practice until right before first game, and spent 6 more weeks on the injury report (every week he had limited practices.) Finally got to 100% which lasted exactly 4 G, sprained A/C shoulder joint, missed four, came back for the last two. Altogether, on the injury report / limited participant 19/23 weeks.

Personally I think the split with Jamaal was partially driven by the injuries. He had TDs of 43, 57, 63 - they really didn’t get splash chunk plays from anyone else. If he stays healthy, they know he’s their best playmaker.

BIG if though.
Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't the Lions lose their Pro Bowl starting Center-Frank early last season and then the rookie Tackle should be improved going into his 2nd season. I feel the Lions Offense is going to be able to control the clock a lot better than last season. I saw some shades of Goff that looked promising. He's a veteran at this point, 2 organizations and still throws a pretty ball when he's accurate.

Improved OL, healthy TJ Hock at TE would help open up more of the offense. I think Chark will lead the receiving corp easily but understand if everyone isn't as enthused as I am.

We're just about halfway through TC and that's a time when around 25-30 fan bases are feeling optimistic about their chances in the upcoming season.

  • Ragnow only played 4 games because of his "stupid toe" but Evan Brown was adequate. Frank might be our best player, but the drop off was not severe.
  • Penei was the LT the first 6 games bc Decker had thumb surgery, played 9 G at RT, and flipped back over to LT the last couple. Pretty sure the Chargers rookie had a better season, but he's on a good trajectory and I believe Pitts was the only player younger (by a few days.) He seems like a foundational piece that could start for as long as he remains healthy. Great teammate, nasty on the field.
  • Goff has a new OC (Ben Johnson) but it turns out last years TE coach was helping MCDC behind the scene all along after they shelved Anthony Lynn. His last 5 games were efficient, though his aDOT is pathetic and he never threw for 300+ yards after a garbage time stat padder Week 1. He has some speed now (Chark, and eventually Jameson Williams), but I haven't seen any evidence he is on the verge of rediscovering his deep ball passing. That Super Bowl ****ed him up good, was never the same guy afterwards. This will probably be his last year as a starter in the league. Schematically I think they are going to be improved with the fresh set of eyes, BJ is a cerebral innovator who is well respected as one of the brightest young minds in the league.
  • They have invested heavily in the offensive line. From LT to RT: 1st round (16th pick), FA (9th highest positional contract), 1st (20th), 3rd (75th), 1st (7th). 2022 Age: 28, 29, 26, 25, 21. Those guys are good, PFF has them 3rd best in the NFL. Their composite grade was around 67 in pass blocking and 76 in run blocking (for all the offensive OL - Decker and Ragnow missed 21 games.) As a unit, they have zero (0) starts together. But this is unquestionably the strength of the roster, their best positional room.
  • healthy Hock would be a novelty, same for DJ Chark. Between the two of them they have 7 seasons and 30 missed games. TJ plays balls to the wall and probably will always be dinged up because he doesn't have another speed. Way, way below the Top 4 Elite TEs but they will use him in the Slot and on the Boundary more this year.
  • for me, same story with Chark - the best ability is availability.
The defensive line is seeing a similar investment to the offensive line. Hutchinson has a great motor and has looked the part from Day One of OTAs. They drafted 3 other Day Two DL the last two years, and found a great sleeper in ILB Malcolm Rodriguez (6th round) - kid is gonna have the green dot helmet soon if he keeps this up. But overall, the defense is just not there yet. They have below average coverage DBs and desperately need the front 7 to generate pressure. We like the DC but we're not seeing it on the field....yet.

BACK ON TOPIC

D'Andre is a microcosm of the franchise. He has shown flashes of greatness. Through 10 weeks last year he was highly effective, especially in the pass game. They'll line him up all over this year. He is without a doubt their best splash play chunk yardage threat. But he's gotta play through pain and be out there every week (or nearly so.) We'll see.

****************

Sorry if this is a honda, don't think it's been posted in this thread...108 catches first two years. 14th RB to achieve that total. The other 13 backs who did it:

Christian McCaffrey, Alvin Kamara, Reggie Bush, Saquon Barkley, LaDainian Tomlinson, Le’Veon Bell, Tarik Cohen, Matt Forte, LeSean McCoy, David Johnson, Domanick Williams, Duke Johnson and Ray Rice
 
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My only concern with Swift beyond injury is that Campbell/Staley seem to absolutely love Jamaal Williams. He may have a fraction of the talent Swift brings, but he's got that hard-nosed mentality the coaching staff lives and breathes. Not sure Swift has that makeup in him.
They do seem to appreciate the energy Williams brings to the team, and that energy is probably a good thing for the offense in general. Additionally, if Williams is taking the more physically taxing reps, the grunt work per se, that could be a net positive for Swift, keeping him healthier, fresher and more dangerous when his number is called.
Yes, Williams may cap Swift on a per game basis, but should help keep him healthy longer through the seasons. Swift has also bulked up some this year.
 

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