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The Detroit Lions running game is been a mess all year, but recently it has been especially turbulent. Thanks to a neck injury, Ameer Abdullah has missed back-to-back games. In that time, we’ve seen the NFL debut of Tion Green, and Theo Riddick’s shot at becoming a starting back. But nothing seems to have changed the bottom line: The Lions cannot efficiently run the ball.
Last week was especially quirky, because Abdullah was reportedly healthy enough to play against the Buccaneers, despite being labeled as questionable. Regardless, the coaching staff chose to scratch him, and depending on who you believe, that may or may not have been a performance decision.
No such debate can be had this week. Abdullah was not given an injury game designation and is undeniably healthy enough to play against the Chicago Bears.
So with Tion Green, Ameer Abdullah, Theo Riddick, Zach Zenner and Dwayne Washington all at their disposal, today’s Question of the Day is:
Who will be the Lions’ leading rusher against the Chicago Bears?
My answer: It could pretty much be any of these guys (and it could even be Jamal Agnew, who should make his return this week), but I’m still going with Abdullah. Whether he was a “healthy” scratch last week or not, the Lions clearly intend on playing him this week.
We’ve seen the Lions send similar wake-up calls to their players before. Golden Tate was benched in 2016 and rebounded nicely. Eric Ebron may or may not have been on the trading block this year, and he has been fantastic since. Matthew Stafford had one of the best runs of his career after getting benched in 2015.
So I wouldn’t be surprised if the Lions are hoping last week’s situation provides a spark in Abdullah’s game and ends up giving extra motivation for redemption this week. I don’t expect Abdullah to suddenly rush for 100 yards, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him get 50-60 rushing yards, even with a patchwork offensive line.
Your turn.
Poll
Who will be the Lions’ leading rusher vs. Bears?
This poll is closed
-
36%
Ameer Abdullah
(81 votes) -
28%
Theo Riddick
(63 votes) -
18%
Tion Green
(40 votes) -
9%
Matthew Stafford
(21 votes) -
3%
Zach Zenner
(8 votes) -
0%
Dwayne Washington
(1 vote) -
0%
Jamal Agnew
(2 votes) -
1%
Other
(3 votes)