Theo Riddick or Reggie Bush? Who Should the Detroit Lions Utilize?
Detroit Lions second year running back Theo Riddick has truly began to come into his own in 2014. At his alma mater, Notre Dame, Riddick was utilized some as a wide receiver, which has carried over into his professional career.
In my opinion, when the Detroit Lions offense has been at its best this season it has been when offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi has used some shorter routes mixed in with some deep shots to his wide receivers and some dump off passes or screens to his running backs out of the backfield. The best evidence of this came on Thanksgiving when the Lions defeated the Chicago Bears in Detroit.
Riddick’s receiving skills combined with his ability to make quick, open field moves makes him a miss-match for most linebackers in the NFL, something that many expected to be pivotal to a Lions victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in week 14.
The Lions came out of Sunday’s matchup victorious, however Theo Riddick never touched the football on offense.
Why is that you’re probably wondering?
"“It’s just one of those things,” Caldwell said. “Sometimes you get into the flow of the game, you’ve got so many guys running in-and-out of there. George (Winn) played some, Reggie (Bush) played a little bit more, it kind of takes that ball out of Riddick’s hands a little bit.”"
VIDEO: #Lions Jim Caldwell explains return of @ReggieBush means less snaps for Theo Riddick. http://t.co/kpZgZiTaQN
— Paula Pasche (@paulapasche) December 8, 2014
Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
It’s great that Detroit managed to win the game, and it’s also great that fellow running back Joique Bell managed to break his best run of the season, a 57-yarder. Yet, it is still disappointing that Detroit couldn’t find room for Riddick in the game plan.
One of the obvious reasons that first come to mind when trying to diagnose the Lions lack of Riddick on Sunday is the return of Reggie Bush.
Bush has battled ankle injuries throughout 2014, but returned as the Detroit Lions starter against Tampa Bay. During Bush’s absence, Riddick seen 16, 25, and 24 offensive plays. Furthermore, Riddick has not seen more than seven snaps in a game when Bush has been active.
On Sunday, Bush played 22 of a total 69 offensive snaps. He had eight carries for 26 yards and four catches for eight yards. Bell seen 44 snaps, George Winn somehow managed to see five reps, and even fullback Jed Collins seen an increased work load. His 27 snaps were the most action he has seen since week four.
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Some consider Bush a better runner at this point, (I’m not so sure) as Riddick is averaging 2.5 yards per carry and has a career long run of just nine yards. I think those numbers would improve dramatically if given the opportunity.
The Lions seem to have found a clear No. 1 back in Bell following Sunday’s win, and an offensive line that is at its healthiest point since the beginning of the year, should certainly continue to help the running game improve when the team could use it most. But you have to really ask yourself; should the Detroit Lions continue to negate Riddick in favor of an injury prone, perhaps over-the-hill, Reggie Bush?
Theo Riddick averaging 10.1 yards per reception this year. Reggie Bush averaging 5.9 yards per reception. #math
— Josh Katzenstein (@jkatzenstein) December 8, 2014
Theo Riddick seemed to play a key role in helping the offense click vs. Chicago, and is definitely the better receiver of the two at this point. He had established a role throughout most of the season, showing his ability to run routes and make decisive cuts, and the Lions had better find a way to get him the ball more as the post season approaches.
Below is a breakdown of the offensive snaps played vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in week 14, via Justin Rogers of MLive:
| Name | Position | Offense | % | Defense | % | Special Teams | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rob Sims | G | 69 | 100% | 7 | 23% | ||
| Matthew Stafford | QB | 69 | 100% | ||||
| Dominic Raiola | C | 69 | 100% | ||||
| Riley Reiff | T | 69 | 100% | ||||
| Larry Warford | G | 68 | 99% | 7 | 23% | ||
| LaAdrian Waddle | T | 66 | 96% | 7 | 23% | ||
| Calvin Johnson | WR | 55 | 80% | ||||
| Golden Tate | WR | 53 | 77% | ||||
| Joique Bell | RB | 44 | 64% | ||||
| Eric Ebron | TE | 42 | 61% | 5 | 17% | ||
| Jeremy Ross | WR | 34 | 49% | 10 | 33% | ||
| Brandon Pettigrew | TE | 34 | 49% | 6 | 20% | ||
| Jed Collins | FB | 27 | 39% | 10 | 33% | ||
| Reggie Bush | RB | 22 | 32% | ||||
| Corey Fuller | WR | 14 | 20% | 7 | 23% | ||
| Joseph Fauria | TE | 12 | 17% | 1 | 3% | ||
| George Winn | RB | 5 | 7% | 17 | 57% | ||
| Travis Swanson | C | 4 | 6% | 7 | 23% | ||
| Cornelius Lucas | T | 3 | 4% | 7 | 23% | ||
| Rashean Mathis | CB | 64 | 100% | 3 | 10% | ||
| DeAndre Levy | LB | 64 | 100% | 3 | 10% | ||
| Glover Quin | FS | 64 | 100% | 3 | 10% | ||
| James Ihedigbo | SS | 64 | 100% | ||||
| Darius Slay | CB | 64 | 100% | ||||
| Cassius Vaughn | CB | 52 | 81% | 7 | 23% | ||
| Ndamukong Suh | DT | 52 | 81% | 3 | 10% | ||
| Ezekiel Ansah | DE | 47 | 73% | ||||
| Tahir Whitehead | LB | 44 | 69% | 8 | 27% | ||
| Jason Jones | DE | 40 | 62% | 3 | 10% | ||
| George Johnson | DE | 32 | 50% | 3 | 10% | ||
| C.J. Mosley | DT | 31 | 48% | 10 | 33% | ||
| Josh Bynes | LB | 20 | 31% | 20 | 67% | ||
| Darryl Tapp | DE | 19 | 30% | 7 | 23% | ||
| Devin Taylor | DE | 18 | 28% | 6 | 20% | ||
| Andre Fluellen | DT | 17 | 27% | 3 | 10% | ||
| Ashlee Palmer | LB | 9 | 14% | 20 | 67% | ||
| Kyle Van Noy | LB | 3 | 5% | 20 | 67% | ||
| Isa Abdul-Quddus | SS | 23 | 77% | ||||
| Don Carey | FS | 23 | 77% | ||||
| Julian Stanford | LB | 20 | 67% | ||||
| Sam Martin | P | 17 | 57% | ||||
| Mohammed Seisay | CB | 13 | 43% | ||||
| Don Muhlbach | LS | 10 | 33% | ||||
| Matt Prater | K | 7 | 23% | ||||
| Theo Riddick | RB | 7 | 23% |
Be sure to scroll down and let us know which running back you prefer the Detroit Lions to utilize as the post season approaches!