Anybody concerned with our RB unit and it's lack of depth?

Kerryon Johnson obviously is #1he has proven himself here, but my issue is who is behind him? Nobody can be the workhorse outside KJ and IF he get’s badly injured, we’re not going to run well…as -is.

to me the group is unfinished & Insufficient and you better have two stud RB’s that can push eachother and flat get it done without question. your # 3 is extra insurance and can block and run and catch or help cover on return duties when called on. he’s there incase BOTH starting backs get injured mostly a 3 TD 5-600 yard guy running JUST above serviceable…but can be ok in a pinch. your #4 RB is strictly a return/special team guy .

They’ve also got Perkins, he might not be shit-hot but he’s better than nothing and maybe he pans out. I think he plays well on ST too, but not sure.

Personally, I think they would be wise to keep KeJo on a snap count, so as not to wear him out and also reduce his exposure to injury.

I love the RB situation the Giants had, when they had Jacobs and Bradshaw. I like those sorts of backs.

I really like our McKissick, but he’s more of a trickster-type. I don’t think we have enough of a body of evidence on Ty, but I’m surprised we haven’t seen more of him. Maybe they have high hopes for him, but don’t trust him to block yet? I agree that Kerryon may ware down over the season, if we continue to give him this many touches.

Wouldn’t mind seeing us get a more powerful guy with break-away speed. Kerryon is pretty B+ at most things, but doesn’t have power or home run ability.

Absolutely I’m concerned. KJ is not a workhorse type RB, yet he is the one carrying the load so far. Really need a 1b type RB, was thinking that last week watching the Eagles give it to both Howard and Sanders.

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Interesting you mention Howard. He is one I really wanted to get this offseason. I’m sure even if Quinn pursued him, there was no way he was getting traded here by Chicago but man that would have been a nice pair in the backfield.

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It’s only a matter of time before KJ gets injured. You could tell at the end of the game that he was battered. He is not built to be a workhorse in this league. TY Johnson really has done less than nothing, Perkins is garbage and Mciissic is a gadget player. The Lions should try and trade for Kareem Hunt. Nick Chubb IS a workhorse back and Browns really don’t need Hunt.

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Gardner - I liked him. I think he would have fit well. Honestly, CJ could have done it, as he had the talent. Thing is, he didn’t fit the culture of the team, from a work ethic standpoint. He would have been considered our laziest player…even during a contract year.

ZZ will likely still be available in a pinch.

Agree w/you dudes that KJ is getting overused & could use some of the load being alleviated.

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Do other teams have this great RB depth that the Lions do not? I guess I don’t see it, most teams have one good back and a bunch of guys.

This is probably just a case of wanting something you don’t have and not realizing what you have is fine.

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no, it is not fine IF KJ gets injured we are not running worth a broke 6ick again. [quote=“goldenlions, post:8, topic:1795, full:true”]
Do other teams have this great RB depth that the Lions do not? I guess I don’t see it, most teams have one good back and a bunch of guys.

This is probably just a case of wanting something you don’t have and not realizing what you have is fine.
[/quote]

No we are not fine, we have one good to solid RB in Kerryon Johnson if he gets injured and taken out for a while, we can’t run for a broke 6ick again .

Right now, a lot of our offensive power is because we have such a good back in KJ but this is the NFL and worse, the Lions and their SOL luck…so chances are KJ gets reinjured.

WE don’t have a fighting pair of starters @ 1 & 2 RB to share the load OR if one does go down…we don’t really miss a beat because we have another RB ‘as’ good as KJ or better to continue running effectively. haven’t seen much IF anything out of any other current back at all.

we are playing with fire @ RB, because we are relying so heavy on KJ and that’s it. There is no backup plan. and Zenner isn’t the answer for a number 2 RB and never was.

Hell, I wanted to draft him. Missed him by one spot, though I guess Dahl has been pretty good this year so that’s a consolation.

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Not only am I concerned with the depth, but the overall talent level as well. I think KJ is fine, but he’s just not a game changer, yet. He comes off as more of a #2 back to me. Maybe in between a 1 and a 2. Not to mention, he doesn’t bring a ton of value as a pass catcher, even though he had that one cool bobbled reception for a TD. I relate him to what Kevin Jones was here.

I know McCaffreys, Zekes, Barkleys don’t grow on trees, but I’d settle for something similar to what Seattle has with the Carson/Penny tandem. Not crazy flashy, but pretty darned productive.

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I think we got 4 guys that are quite similar and can each see the field without changing the playbook much… And of course ZZ is just a phone call away.

I am concerned about it. Given the quality of RB talent at the college level right now I really hope we add an understudy by round 4 in the upcoming draft.

As others have mentioned, we can probably get Zenner back any time we need him. Did CJ Anderson get signed by anyone? If not, then we have two decent utility backs who spent the off-season with us available.

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I’m still not writing off Ty Johnson. One would assume there’s a reason he’s not getting touches, but who knows what’s going on for sure. So far, Ty has proven tougher than I though, in terms of absorbing/delivering contact. We know he’s got vision and speed. Probably not trustworthy in blocking just yet. Point being, we may have a really good one on the roster already. Fingers crossed.

Wondering why TyJo isn’t getting more snaps, other than maybe he doesn’t pass pro worth a damn. And I wonder if that matters a whole lot when you got those kind of wheels. I think he’d be more valuable as a safety outlet out in the flats somewhere that would have to draw the attention of an LB or Safety that he could outrun. And he can run inside too, doesn’t have the power that others do, but he’ll stick his nose in there.

Or maybe he’s too inconsistent catching the ball or holding onto to it (ball security). In practice I mean, that we don’t see.

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I still have the feeling Bevell isn’t showing all his cards yet. We’ve played a quarter of the season and have yet to play our first divisional game which is still 10 days away.
Not sure when they’ll unleash everything but best not to do it too early. So far, we have loads of inter-divisional tape on the Bears, Vikings, and Packers and they have next to zero on us by comparison.
We may see some new wrinkles very soon…

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Yes. I’m very concerned about KJ going down. I’m a fan of Ty as a 6-8 touch change of pace guy. I don’t think he’s a capable replacement if KJ goes down. Perkins? Doubtful but I’m not sure.

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I don’t like Zenner unless he’s a #3 or 4th RB, he’s not a #2 RB savior/workhorse IF KJ goes down.

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We’re not getting a true replacement for KJ in the middle of the season. If he gets hurt, then I expect the Lions would go RBC and bring back Zenner or Anderson to split carries with Ty Johnson and McKissic (sp?). Maybe Bawden can handle goal line and 1 yard to go carries.

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