The biggest factor in whether the Lions will actually compete this season is the health of Stafford. Before going down with injury, Stafford was having a pretty stellar season. Per Pro Football Focus, through the first nine weeks of the 2019 season, Stafford was top-10 in PFF passing grade (81.6), big-time throw rate (8.2%) and yards per attempt (8.6).
He threw 19 touchdowns to just five interceptions, while completing 64.3% of his throws and accumulated 2,499 yards. Not bad for half a season of work.
Stafford isn’t the only solid piece on the Lions offense either. They boast one of the best wide receiver tandems in the NFL with Marvin Jones Jr. and Kenny Golladay. They both went over 750 yards receiving last season and they each caught at least eight touchdowns. We can’t forget about Danny Amendola in the slot either, as he moved the chains on over 50% of his catches last season.
The Lions hit it out of the park with their first two selections in this year’;s draft as well, taking Ohio State standout corner Jeff Okudah and arguably the best running back in the draft with their second round pick, D’Andre Swift out of Georgia.
Replacing Darius Slay will be no easy task, but Okudah certainly has the potential to be just as good as Slay was in Detroit’s defense. They also went out and acquired veteran corner Desmond Trufant, who should pair nicely with Okudah in the Lions secondary.
Overall, there’s a lot to like about this Lions team as they enter the 2020 campaign. They have the potential to surprise a lot of people this year, there’s no question about that.
