The Detroit Lions have injuries piling up on the team. As the remain without a win on the season, the Lions are in desperate need of some kind of momentum and their depth is making that hard. With Eric Ebron out the next three to four weeks and Joique Bell dealing with nagging injuries, the Lions are looking at a slew of free agents to help on the offensive side of the ball.
On Wednesday it was reported by Josina Anderson of ESPN.com that Ebron would miss the next three to four weeks with a knee injury. That pairs with the hamstring issues to Brandon Pettigrew which leaves Detroit with one healthy tight end in Tim Wright. As a result, they are dipping into the free agent market for help which is offering little talent at the moment. According to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, the Lions brought in Cameron Clear for a workout, but remain confident that Pettigrew can plan against Arizona. Pettigrew returned to practice on Thursday and is expected to play in Week 5 against the Arizona Cardinals. That should buy the Lions time until Ebron returns.
The run game is also having its issues. Bell remains out with an ankle injury. The running back has made little to no impact this season as he continues to deal with issues that began last season. This has allowed Ameer Abdullah to gain steam in his rookie season, but he is not enough to stabilize the offense. Theo Riddick and Zach Zanner have made some impact, but not enough to help Matthew Stafford. Florio reports that the Lions have brought in Bryce Brown and Travaris Cadet for workouts. Both running backs were on respective rosters at the start of the season and could be solid additions in Detroit to help with depth moving forward.
The roster additions might help, but they will not fix the issues Detroit continues to have. A lot of the blame is being pegged on Calvin Johnson who is not looking like his usual dominating self so far this season. Johnson has been the safety blanket for Stafford this year, but the two simply are not connecting like they used to. Against the Seahawks, Johnson and Stafford tried to connect multiple times and simply could not. Place the blame on either player, but something is off.
The Lions are not likely to go 0-16 like some fans are already predicting. Losing Ebron was a hit for the team, but Abdullah along with Golden Tate are improving with each game. Stafford will figure things out enough to get a few wins in the book, but just how many is anyone's guess.
