Lions: David Blough should start the remainder of the season

The David Blough experiment with the Detroit Lions is underway after making his first career start Thursday against the Chicago Bears.

Despite losing to Chicago 24-20 in Thanksgiving day classic, Detroit Lions, the rookie quarterback showed some positive signs. The Lions decided to start rookie David Blough whom they acquired in a trade from Clevland for just as the regular season was set to begin.

At the time of the deal, it was a bit of a surprise because adding Blough gave the Lions a total of five quarterbacks rostered. They decided to part ways with Luis Perez, Tom Savage, and eventually Josh Johnson, who I feel the team should have held on to for the duration of the season. Not that it would make much of a difference at this point in the season, but I was impressed with Johnson’s play in the preseason.

The Lions tried to add Johnson recently, but they were blocked by the XFL, who currently controls his rights from signing the veteran to a deal. It’s a bit odd to me that Jeff Driskel, who apparently was healthy enough to dress and back up Blough on Thursday, has recently been placed on the injury reserve list ending his season.

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Driskel had been battling a tight hamstring but was practicing all be it in a limited role. Can someone tell me why Matthew Stafford hasn’t been placed on IR? A few weeks back, I wrote how if Stafford becomes completely healthy again this season that the Lions should play him for a couple of reasons including just becoming crisp with this new offensive scheme, and keeping his timing perfect with the teams’ receivers.

After more thought as the losses continue to mount, why play him? The man has broken bones in his back. It would be in Detroit’s best interest to rest Stafford and have him completely healed entering the offseason. He will have plenty of time to practice over the Spring & Summer. Having the 31-year old completely healthy is much more important than winning a game or two down the stretch.

A couple of positive things can happen rolling with David Blough for the rest of the season. The Lions haven’t had a reliable back-up quarterback since the Shaun Hill days. Perhaps, rookie David Blough could develop into a solid QB2 if he gets enough game work and practice time with the first-team offense to become a solid NFL back up.

The same could be said for Jeff Driskel, but either that hamstring injury is significant, or the coaching staff felt they didn’t see enough positive plays to continue with Driskel. As Blough continues to learn, the Lions will likely continue to struggle, which helps their draft position. Wouldn’t it be nice to add a stand out pass rusher like Chase Young? Just saying.

Blough went undrafted after playing his college ball in the Big Ten with the Purdue Boilermakers. During his senior season, he passed for 3705 yards and 25 touchdowns, also completing 66% of his pass attempts.

Thursday in Blough’s first NFL start, his first pass was thrown at the feet of his intended receiver. The crowd snickered, clearly thinking it was shaping up to be a long day. He immediately bounced back on third down with his second career pass. He threw a strike to a wide-open streaking Kenny Golladay for a 75-yard touchdown. Needless to say, the crowd awoke with some optimism.

Despite having a respectable first start of his career, he threw a costly interception late sealing a Bears win. The Lions were driving for a win when Blough was sacked on third down, setting up a nearly impossible 4th & 22 to go, when David threw a pass that landed in the very talented Eddie Jackson‘s hands rather than his intended receiver.

It happens, especially to young quarterbacks. The entire second half film will serve as an excellent learning curve for Blough. The Bears defenders were regularly jumping Lion’s routes, and Blough struggled to go through his progressions.

Next. What Should The Team Do With Matt Patricia?. dark

David Blough making his professional debut went 22 of 38 for 280 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also threw that costly interception.

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