It turns out you should maybe give touches to your stud second-round running back. As the Lions let Adrian Peterson brickwall while the passing game struggled, D’Andre Swift gathered dust in a change-of-pace role, a fate undoubtedly influenced by his drop of a walk-off touchdown in Week 1.
When a mysterious Week 6 Peterson MRI opened the door to more work against the Jaguars, Swift responded by turning 14 carries into 116 yards and two scores. Even that wasn’t enough to force coach Matt Patricia’s hand, with Swift handling a non-trivial but still inadequate 22 touches over the next two weeks.
Finally, Week 9 arrived with Swift going 13/64 on the ground on 3/33 through the air. That was the warmup for yesterday, where Swift tagged the Football Team’s solid defense for 16/81 as a rusher and 5/68/1 as a receiver. Peterson handled only four carries as the Lions held on for a critical win.
Averaging 4.7 yards per carry and 8.9 yards per catch in an offense that is anything but well oiled, we are seeing why Swift was attractive with the No. 35 overall pick. “Sudden” through the hole, Swift looks a gear faster than your average running back. Like Peterson in his prime, Swift is capable of both rugged running and blinding acceleration. He is a sophisticated runner at the first level of the defense.
A plus pass catcher, Swift has all the tools for long-term success. Thankfully, it is translating to immediate success in an offense that is finally giving him a chance. Already an every-week RB2, Swift is rapidly pushing for RB1 treatment in a dire fantasy year for the running back position.