The five established Detroit Lions who need to impress in training camp
By Ash Thompson
The receiver out of the backfield
One-Dimensional players need to justify their roster spot every year. Theo Riddick does one thing very well. He is among the NFL’s best receivers out of the backfield. The problem with that is that he is not a very good runner. Because of that, opposing teams can forego defending the run almost entirely when Riddick is on the field.
Ameer Abdullah’s effective demotion puts the two in direct competition for third down and passing situation snaps. Both are quick but not fast players who thrive in open space. Abdullah is a far more respected runner, however. It could be that his ability to keep teams honest against the run opens up more room for the type of dump off passes both players can take for big gains.
Riddick’s role has never really been threatened. He is still living off his 2015 performance, however. During that season he bailed the Lions out of numerous terrible situations. He amassed 80 catches, that is a high he has not even come close to since. he has a combined 106 catches in the two seasons since. He signed a big contract, relative to his skill set, and then his performance faded. That is almost a step by step guide on how to get cut in the second half on an NFL contract.
Riddick needs to have a good training camp in order to keep a role that justifies his salary. Cutting him before the season would save the team over $3 million in cap space. They may not need the money now, but those savings carry over to next year if they are not used. Those savings could be used to retain someone like Tate or Ansah for the 2019 season.
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Every NFL player has to justify their contract every season, but these guys have just a little more riding on their training camp performance than most. A bad camp leaves the door open for someone else to step in. There young bucks ready and willing to take each of these jobs.