against the Lions, he’ll break Cal | Forum

With news that the Detroit Lions are preparing to be without All Pro punt returner Jamal Agnew for the long term Levine Toilolo Jersey , the team is now facing an interesting dilemma. Prior to Week 5, Agnew was handling both the kick and punt return duties, as well as picking up a significant portion of defensive snaps, and even a couple of offensive plays, as well. The man did a heck of a lot for a 2017 fifth-round pick, which, unfortunately, means the Lions will have to rely on several players to pick up the slack.But for today, let’s just focus on his special teams contributions and who may help take over in both returning spots. On Sunday, Ameer Abdullah—active for the first time all year—took over as the team’s kick returner Christian Jones Jersey , but it’s unclear if that will continue to be his job going forward. It seems odd to keep five running backs (including fullback) active on gameday, especially since they only kept three active last year. So today’s Question of the Day is:Who should the Lions’ kick and punt returner be with Jamal Agnew out?My answer:I’m going to break this down by potential optionsAmeer Abdullah - Abdullah seems like the most logical choice here for kick returner, not only because he was there against the Packers, but because he was pretty darn good as the team’s kick returner in 2015—averaging 29.1 yards per return. The question here is whether Abdullah would be worth an active spot on the roster. If Kerryon Johnson misses any time, this is a no-brainer, but if not, five active running backs is honestly a poor use of roster space. Additionally, Abdullah doesn’t provide any value as a punt returner. He hasn’t returned a punt since his sophomore year in college. TJ Jones - Jones has 10 kick returns to his name as a Lion and averaged a respectable, but not fantastic 21.1 yards per kick. Jones is an interesting option, because he not only could take over punt return duties Devon Kennard Jersey , but he won’t take up an extra gameday roster spot—Jones has been active in every game this year, and offers offensive potential, as well. One reason why I think roster management is a big factor here is because the Lions have only returned seven kickoffs this year. If we’re being completely honest, kick returner is a dying position right now, and it’s not worth a roster spot alone. Brandon Powell - Powell has been sitting on the team’s roster all year, but has yet to be active for a single game. In the preseason and training camp, Powell’s speed was on full display, and he looked to be the team’s second-best returner behind Agnew. However, activating him would mean someone else would ride the bench, and I don’t think Powell would provide much of anything outside of special teams.Golden Tate - Tate probably wouldn’t take over kick return duties Isaac Nauta Detroit Lions Jersey , but he’s shown himself to be valuable as a punt return guy. Over the course of his career, he’s returned 90 punts for an average of 10.7 yards per return. There’s an obvious injury risk in putting Tate back there, but he’s clearly the team’s most experienced option and he won’t use up that extra roster spot. Conclusion:I’m all about using your roster spots efficiently, and considering the new kickoff rules have all but ended kick returns in Detroit, I don’t think it’s worth adding another player to the gameday roster for that alone. Brandon Powell could do both punt and kick return duties, but I still don’t think it’s worth it. Have TJ Jones take a knee for kickoffs, and roll the dice with Tate as the punt returner (it’s not like the Lions are forcing that many punts, either—they only have seven returns on the year). Your turn.Tweets from https://twitter.com/PrideOfDetroit/lists/lions-coverage The Detroit Lions are going to need to have all hands on deck this Sunday as they take on the rising Minnesota Vikings. Their NFC North foes have won three of their last four and seem to be trending in the right direction despite last week’s loss to the Saints.The good news for Detroit is that they may be entering this week as healthy as ever, and it starts with defensive end Ezekiel Ansah. While he is far from guaranteed to play, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter Isaac Nauta Jersey 2019 , the Lions are “optimistic” about his chances this week: Earlier in the week, head coach Matt Patricia hinted that Ansah was making progress with his shoulder injury. “He’s right in the mix right now with all of it. It’s been good for him to be out there every single day,” Patricia said. But he also warned that he’s still working through it.“We’re making progress, but it’s still day-by-day.”There was also concern for star cornerback Darius Slay, who popped up on the injury report Friday with a new knee injury. According to Schefter, there isn’t much to worry about there. The news isn’t as optimistic for the Vikings, who are also dealing with a few key injuries. First and foremost, receiver Stefon Diggs is dealing with a rib injury and it’s looking more and more likely he’ll sit out this week. Not only did the Vikings promote an additional receiver from their practice squad on Saturday, but Schefter says Diggs is not expected to play. That’s a huge break for the Lions, who have struggled in coverage all year. At this point Color Rush Isaac Nauta Jersey , it would make sense for Slay to follow Adam Thielen, who has been an absolute terror to opposing defenses throughout the first eight weeks of the season. Thielen leads the league in receptions and receiving yards, and if he eclipses 100 yards receiving against the Lions, he’ll break Calvin Johnson’s record of eight straight games with 100+ yards. Lastly, it looks like Minnesota will finally get their 2017 second-round pick Dalvin Cook back in the lineup. Schefter is reporting the Vikings running back will be on a “pitch count” as he returns from a hamstring injury that has held him out since Week 3.