3 Detroit Lions who need to rebound against the Bucs
By Zack Moran
A loose end
There were a lot of other players that need to have a rebound game. Like Jarrad Davis, Taylor Decker, and Ameer Abdullah. There is one player though that everyone pegged to be a starter and now is on the roster bubble and that’s Michael Roberts.
Roberts was the lone returner out of a revamped tight end group and expected to have a breakout season. He was being pegged the starter even though the Lions signed Luke Willson in the offseason. It started going downhill for Roberts when he injured his leg in training camp. Not only did he lose valuable reps, but he is also losing confidence with coaches and fans.
Roberts was lackluster in the first game against the Raiders not recording a catch on one target. Things did not get any better for him against the Giants. He got flagged on an obvious false start and he also missed a block that led to a tackle for loss. He only caught one pass, but that was towards the end of the game.
The contributing factor that is leading towards Roberts slide is the emergence of Hakeem Valles. Valles has proven to be the receiving threat the Lions are looking for in a tight end. With Valles having a really strong camp, it’s pushing Roberts further down the depth chart. Going from the projected starter to the point now where he might not make the roster.
I don’t think Bob Quinn will cut Roberts so soon, but he needs to have a strong game (both receiving and blocking) against the Bucs to prove he belongs in a crowded tight end group.
Next. 10 things we learned about the Detroit Lions in the Giants game. dark
A preseason loss isn’t something to lose sleep over, but the way the Lions looked against the Giants have a lot of people worried. The first two weeks have not inspired fans as much as they have hoped for. Even Coach Patricia was not pleased with the Lions performance who said there is a lot of work to do during his post-game press conference. With Week 3 being the dress rehearsal of the preseason, hopefully, we see an uptick in performance with not only the players listed but with the whole team themselves.