It's been no secret at all that the Detroit Lions have been having issues at receiver during camp. They just can't seem to find that WR3 to step up and play that big role. We know now that Kalif Raymond won't be doing that , but who could?
It's like to come down to one of Kaden Davis, Daurice Fountain or Donovan Peoples-Jones unless the team signs or trades for a new receiver to fill that role. If they do, the previously listed three guys could all be gone. The big reason for that is that it looks like the Lions have a lot of interest in carrying up to five running backs and having some of those guys become part of the pass game.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell first brought up this idea last Wednesday when he was on 97.1 The Ticket.
"Honestly, what it is, is we just need a reliable staple, you know? Like, that's what Reynolds was for us. Josh Reynolds was the reliable guy we could count on he was gonna be where he's supposed to be when he was supposed to be there to play any spot, and he'd make a critical catch for you" Campbell said. "You need a steady reliable, when the ball needs to find you because coverage dictates it, and that's the guy we need to find. Who is that guy? That is important now. That being said, we don't want to just keep a guy because he's receiver 3,4,5. Like, we want to keep the best players we have in the roster, and that could come in the running back room. Okay."
It's that little spot at the end where Campbell says the team wants to keep the best players and that could come in the running back room. Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery are in, but the Lions have loved what they have seen from Sione Vaki, Jermar Jefferson and Craig Reynolds.
The ability to carry five running backs is really going to depend on how little they carry at another position. Receiver makes the most sense there since outside of three guys, none of the other guys have really done enough to earn a spot. Campbell sort of hinted at that again on Tuesday when he was asked how many roster spots were still open.
"Brad and I were talking yesterday. We had another evaluation with the coaches and personnel department. And, you know probably five, six somewhere in there, five or six, give or take, and some of it will have, one could have a bearing on another position, and vice versa."
Receiver and running back are the only position groups that really make sense with that. This is something to really keep an eye on. The Lions could be loaded at running back and looking to try all kinds of things. We've already seen how much they like to pass the ball to Vaki. He's almost a receiver at this point.
Related: Dan Campbell explains why Kalif Raymond is not in the Lions wide receiver 3 spot
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