The Detroit Lions escaped with a win in Week 1, but a much tougher challenge awaits them in Week 2. They take on the Buffalo Bills, who are opening the brand-new Highmark Stadium, following an overtime game and a quick turnaround.
This has already left its mark on the roster, as the Lions will be without two starters on the offensive line: Christian Mahogany and Blake Miller. Things could get even more complicated if DJ Reed, who is currently listed as questionable, is ruled out before the game.
But injuries are not the only concern Dan Campbell has heading into Thursday Night Football. There were plenty of underperformers in the season opener. The Lions won despite a number of very disappointing performances, but their margin for error will be much smaller in Buffalo.
One of these performances was Isaac TeSlaa's. Entering his second season in the league, TeSlaa had a lot of Lions fans excited about his outlook. In Week 1 against the Saints, TeSlaa was completely invisible, despite playing 52 snaps. He was targeted once and didn't touch the ball once.
Fortunately for him, the Lions aren't ready to give up on him just yet.
Lions will be more intentional in trying to get Isaac TeSlaa involved in Week 2
There isn't much wide receiver depth on the roster to begin with. The Lions have Tay Martin and Tom Kennedy as their WRs 4 and 5, but they are more special teams aces. They haven't been much involved offensively throughout their careers.
Plus, Campbell gave TeSlaa his stamp of approval during the week. In his appearance on 97.1 The Ticket, Campbell said the former third-round pick "has earned the right" to get more targets with all the dirty work and blocking he did against the Saints. He added, "He’s on our mind. We’d like to have him as a part of this thing in the pass game. Yeah, we see him, we get it."
While TeSlaa wasn't a huge part of the passing game in his rookie season, he had shown plenty of flashes, especially making difficult catches in traffic and making plays in the red zone. There was hope that he could emerge as a more important part of the offense, but that hasn't been the case so far.
TeSlaa was a no-show in the preseason as well. He had only three targets and zero catches in the 44 preseason snaps he played. After being one of the lowest-graded players on the team on Pro Football Focus in the preseason, he received the lowest offensive grade in Week 1.
It sounds like Campbell will continue to ride with TeSlaa for now, but he has to make the most of the team's trust in him. Otherwise, there will soon be calls to replace him with Tay Martin, who was a bright spot on special teams against New Orleans.
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