Lions notes: Kenny Golladay is already living up to his potential

With Golden Tate gone and Marvin Jones Jr. battling a knee injury, now is the time for Detroit Lions receiver Kenny Golladay. The second-year player leads the team in receiving yards and is coming into his own thus far.

He’s also drawn the attention of analytic website Pro Football Focus, who credited both him and Titans receiver Corey Davis as two players living up to their potential.

The PFF article does a good job using stats and highlights to illustrate the strides Golladay has made in just a year’s time. For example, Golladay’s big-play potential is obvious by his 15.4 yards per reception average—10th among NFL receivers with at least 40 catches. He’s also been credited with just one drop so far this year, meaning he’s a pretty reliable target when a catchable ball is thrown his way.

Tate must have rubbed off on him a little on him because Golladay is also a threat after the ball is already in his hands.

“The former Huskies’ receiver dominates with his size and physical ability in contested catch situations, but he is also a threat after the catch,” PFF’s Evan McPhillips wrote. “Through 10 weeks, Golladay’s 5.5 yards after the catch per reception is tied for 15th among receivers with 40 or more targets.”

The whole thing is worth a read, because Golladay remains one of the few reasons to still be optimistic about the future of this team.

• This will probably shock you, but despite the Lions allowing 16 sacks in the past two weeks, Matthew Stafford remains one of the least-pressured quarterbacks in the league.

• Already looking ahead to next year’s free agent class? Pro Football Focus has the top 2019 free agents at every position.

• Congrats to long snapper Don Muhlbach, who is the Lions’ nominee for the Art Rooney Sportsmanship Award:

• Justin Rogers’ five observations from Chicago does a great job breaking down the film and why Detroit’s defense gave up a bunch of big plays through the air, but also how the run defense rebounded in a big way.

• Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week after his big day against the Lions.

• A’Shawn Robinson was mic’d up for Sunday’s game against the Bears. Check out what he had to say during the game here: