Detroit Lions won't name a kick returner before opener vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Kalif Raymond should play a significant role at receiver for the Detroit Lions this fall, especially with Jameson Williams suspended for the first six games of the season. But Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp said he still is counting on Raymond to be the Lions' primary punt returner this year.
"I would see him doing that barring he doesn’t have enough juice in the tank or what not," Fipp said Saturday. "In terms of the kickoff return, I’m not going to totally (say who is handling) that one."
Fipp said the Lions have several options to handle kick returns when they open the season Thursday against the Kansas City Chiefs, and who they pick for the job may be more about who plays where on the blocking unit than who offers the most big-play potential on returns.
Of the six different Lions who handled kick returns in the preseason, just two remain on the 53-man roster: Rookie receiver Antoine Green and backup cornerback Khalil Dorsey. Practice squad receivers Maurice Alexander and Dylan Drummond also had kick returns in preseason games, and running backs Craig Reynolds and Jahmyr Gibbs were among those who toyed with the duties in practice.
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Gibbs was a standout return man at Georgia Tech and Alabama in college, but the Lions might be hesitant to play him on kicks given the role he'll have in the offensive backfield. Reynolds is a logical choice to handle the return duties as the No. 3 running back, much like Justin Jackson did last season after not attempting a return in the preseason.
Raymond is listed as the Lions' starting kick and punt returner on their unofficial depth chart.
"The easiest way to say it for me, it really comes down to how can we get the best 11 guys (on the unit) and it’s not always the best returner," Fipp said. "If we had some guy who was exceptional, maybe, but it’s really how do we get the best 11 on the field? And so sometimes it’s not like which returner do we want, it’s more like who do we want blocking for the guy, and so some of that will come down to that. But I’m excited about who we have."
The Lions ranked second in the NFL in punt return average (13.2 ypr) and third on kick returns (26.1 ypr) last season, and had similar success returning kicks this summer.
Dorsey had a 62-yard return in the Lions' preseason finale against the Carolina Panthers, and Green and cornerback Starling Thomas, now with the Arizona Cardinals, had 30-plus-yard returns.
Fipp said he's likes the unit as a whole, but cautioned preseason return stats are not indicative of things will go in-season.
"Reality tells me it’s going to get a lot harder here real quick, starting with this Thursday night," Fipp said. "But no, those guys did a great job of executing. We spent a lot of time on fundamentals and technique and stuff like that. I felt like a lot of that stuff showed up. We got a good roster and I think it’s as good as it’s been since I’ve been here overall, so that also helps. We’ve got better players doing some of these things."
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Vertically challenged?
The Lions will be without Williams, their top deep threat, until Week 7, but quarterback Jared Goff said that should not hinder his ability to push the ball downfield.
"I think there’s ways to do it," he said. "You don’t have to have a 4.2 guy in order to do it. Teams do it all across the league without 4.2 guys, so being able to find those ways, the scheme, open it up and be able to utilize our different skillsets at receiver and even tight end and running back to create those mismatches and make those explosives.”
Among Lions receivers, Raymond averaged a team-best 13.1 yards per catch last season, but at 5 feet 8 he does not have the frame of a typical outside receiver. Amon-Ra St. Brown (11 ypc) and Josh Reynolds (12.6 ypc) both averaged less than 13 yards per reception last season, and Marvin Jones averaged 11.5 yards per catch for the Jacksonville Jaguars, one of the lowest totals of his career.
Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson indicated he is counting on Gibbs and rookie tight end Sam LaPorta to help open up the field.
"I think that can come from a number of different positions," he said. "It doesn’t necessarily have to be the receiver spot, but I feel comfortable with what we’ve done here in training camp that we’ve got plenty of guys that can stretch the field vertically, so I’m not really concerned about that early in the season here. I think we’re going to be just fine in being selective in when we do target the deep area."
Injury update
Defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs, who left the Panthers game early with an undisclosed injury, was the only player who did not take part in the open portion of practice Saturday.
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions won't name a kick returner before opener vs. Chiefs
