The majority of the 53-man roster for the Detroit Lions has been decided. Things can still change between now and Sunday's roster cutdown deadline, but the Lions will hope that injuries aren't the reason for those changes. One of the remaining position battles for head coach Dan Campbell is at backup quarterback.
Joshua Dobbs and Luke Altmyer have been going at it since Teddy Bridgewater's unexpected retirement. When Dobbs signed with the Lions during training camp, many assumed that the experienced veteran would run away with the QB2 job.
That hasn't been the case. Undrafted free agent Altmyer has been giving Dobbs a run for his money. In fact, purely based on preseason performances, Altmyer has outplayed the 31-year-old signal-caller. But will Dan Campbell feel comfortable giving the QB2 job to unproven Altmyer?
Joshua Dobbs has to be way better in preseason finale to earn the QB2 role
Saturday's preseason finale against the Indianapolis Colts will be telling. The coaching staff would love for Dobbs to take the job, as he has plenty of starting experience under his belt and has familiarity with offensive coordinator Drew Petzing. So, the Lions will be looking for reasons to give Dobbs the backup quarterback job.
That requires Dobbs to play much better tomorrow than he did in the past two games. He only played for a quarter in his preseason debut, not doing much in his snaps. Last week against the Commanders, he got off to a disastrous start. In the first two drives of the game, he had a fumble and an interception. The lost fumble was particularly costly, as it resulted in a Washington touchdown, but the interception was a very preventable error.
Dobbs rebounded nicely and had an impressive 50-yard TD run later in the half. This showcased his big-play potential and mobility, but he can't afford to have another game full of mistakes.
Before Preseason Week 2, Campbell had said that the QB2 competition was wide open. Both Dobbs and Altmyer would get a chance to claim the job. They ended up splitting reps against the Commanders; whether that will continue to be the case on Saturday remains to be seen.
Altmyer has been getting most of the second-team reps in practice. Whether that's because he is ahead of Dobbs in the pecking order or it's because he needs the reps more than the veteran is unclear. But it's safe to say that he has as good a chance as Dobbs to earn a spot on the 53-man roster.
It's not like Dobbs is only competing against Altmyer. There will be quarterbacks hitting the open market after the roster cutdowns. There will also be trade opportunities for signal-callers further down the depth chart. The Lions could find a better alternative than Dobbs on the market, unless the Passtronaut proves that he is the man for the job on Saturday.
Add us as a preferred source on Google