2013 POD Awards: Breakout Player of the Year

Next up in the 2013 POD Awards is the category for the Detroit Lions' Breakout Player of the Year. Here are the nominees:

RB Joique Bell

Bell actually had nearly 900 total yards from scrimmage and 3 touchdowns in 2012, but he really took his game to another level in 2013. He combined for nearly 1,200 yards from scrimmage, and he found the end zone 8 times.

WR Jeremy Ross

Ross only caught 5 passes for 59 yards and 1 touchdown as a receiver, but he broke out as a returner. After joining the Lions during the season, Ross went on to return 15 kicks for an average of 29.3 yards and 15 punts for an average of 16.2 yards. What's more, Ross had a kick return touchdown and a punt return touchdown in 2013. (Both return TDs were in the same game, actually.)

C Dominic Raiola

The 2013 season was Raiola's 13th in the NFL. He had never really been considered a strength at center, and before he took a pay cut, it looked like he might not even remain on the team. However, Raiola did remain on the team, and he went on to have a career season. He was one of the top centers in all of the NFL, and he was a big part of the Lions' dominant offensive line.

LB DeAndre Levy

The Lions chose to re-sign Levy over Justin Durant last year, and that turned out to be a very smart move. Levy had a career season in 2013 and finished with 119 tackles, 14 pass defenses, 6 interceptions and 1 touchdown. He was a big-time playmaker on defense for the Lions.

(Note: Since this category is meant to recognize players who have been in the league for multiple seasons, rookies were not considered.)