Detroit Lions claim Josh Reynolds off waivers to add to receiving core

The Detroit Lions have been without any promising receivers since this year started. They came into the season with Tyrell Williams being the best option. Since then, Williams has sustained an injury and been released via an injury settlement.

Quintez Cephus has also had his season ended after just a few games with a broken collarbone. Overall the Detroit Lions receiving core has been relying on Kalif Raymond and Amon-Ra St. Brown to get the job done. While St. Brown is promising, he is still young and not ready to be the team’s best receiving option.

However, on Wednesday, the Lions were able to do something about that and bring in reinforcement for the receiving group. While it’s not Odell Beckham Jr. who the team opted to pass on, it is someone whom Jared Goff has played with before.

The Lions claimed wide receiver Josh Reynolds off of waivers from the Tennessee Titans organization. Reynolds was not really needed with the services of A.J. Brown and Julio Jones locking things down, down in Nashville. Reynolds was not getting the looks he would have hoped.

As a former member of the Los Angeles Rams, Brad Holmes and Jared Goff know about Reynolds and what he can bring to the table. He may be the end-all-be-all for this team, but it’s an excellent addition for the offense.

Detroit Lions claiming Josh Reynolds helps a desperate receiving core.

Reynolds has been in the league for five seasons now, a former fourth-round pick out of Texas A&M University who spent four years catching passes from the Lions quarterback. His best season was in 2020 where he started to get more looks in the Rams offense.

In 2020 he logged all 16 games with a career-high 81 targets where he had 52 receptions and would go on to accumulate 618 yards with two touchdowns to his credit as well. It was a solid season for Reynolds and one that was able to help him get a contract for the 2021 season.

Though it would not work out the best for him, he would play in five games with just 13 targets, ten receptions, and 90 yards to his credit.  It’s not anywhere near what Reynolds would like to see for himself, and the Titans were probably underwhelmed but more focused on their other receivers.

This move allows the Lions to not only bring in a receiver to help out this already struggling group, but it also allows them to add in someone that Goff is already familiar with. It may help limit the learning curve in some areas to help get Reynolds involved as soon as possible.

It will be interesting to see how quickly Reynolds can get going and try to make a difference for the Lions’ offense in the coming weeks.