The Lions may have to reopen a competition they thought was settled — and I already have a favorite
Kennedy’s knee injury doesn’t look good, which means Detroit may have to revisit its punt-return options coming out of the bye. Dominic Lovett makes the most sense, but he isn’t the only possibility.
The Detroit Lions rolled to a 45-21 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Despite the blowout, Detroit may have to go back to a competition it thought it settled in August and start it all over again.
Lions punt returner Tom Kennedy went down early in the game on a return. We don’t know how long he’ll be out. Lions coach Dan Campbell indicated after the game that it doesn’t look good, and that leaves the Lions searching for a new punt returner.
What Dave Fipp wants in a punt returner
Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp has been clear about what he looks for in the role. He wants a guy with ball security, open-field ability, and durability. Keep that standard in mind, because it rules out a couple of the more popular ideas floating around.
The best options already on the roster
Dominic Lovett is the developmental option. In August, Fipp specifically mentioned the wide receiver as a third punt return candidate behind Kennedy and Greg Dortch. Lovett did struggle a little bit this summer. It wasn’t to the point where you panic, but he did muff some punts during practice.
That being said, I wrote about this a few times. Coming away from camp, I thought Lovett looked a lot better, cleaner, and more confident. He makes the most sense in this role. Plus, he’s already in the organization. You just move him up from the practice squad.
Amon-Ra St. Brown is the immediate solution. The wide receiver had a nice 30-yard punt return against the Cardinals, although he also fumbled. It was understandable for this game because Detroit had to do it. If I’m coaching the Lions, though, I don’t want St. Brown back there ever again. He’s too important to this offense, and that’s a chance that just isn’t worth taking.
Tay Martin is the option worth investigating. Martin made this roster because of his special teams ability. I don’t remember the wide receiver ever lining up as a punt returner, but that doesn’t mean he can’t do it. I’d want to look into that one a little more.
The options I would pass on
Running back Sione Vaki has taken punt return reps in camp, and he’s a bigger option. Fipp, however, has talked about wanting his kick returner to be a bigger, stronger guy. With that in mind, Vaki looks like a much better fit as a kick returner than as a punt returner. I don’t really see this one happening.
Then there’s the dream idea some Lions fans have, and that’s Jameson Williams. I get it. Williams has taken reps at both punt returner and kick returner, mostly punt returner, and his speed is unbelievable.
The knock on Williams has always been his struggle with tracking the ball in the air. That’s exactly what this job requires. Keep him at receiver. The last thing you want is Williams out there muffing punts. Maybe he won’t, but maybe he will. Do you really want to risk that?
Detroit likely won’t look outside
If I had to name a favorite for the job right now, it’s Lovett. Still, it’s worth looking into some of these other options.
Letting Dortch go feels bad now, too. The Lions could have had him. He’s no longer on the Buffalo Bills’ practice squad, either, because Buffalo signed him to its 53-man roster in late September. Detroit can’t claim him, so the Lions are stuck where they are.
On the other side of the bye week, you never know, and maybe Kennedy will be fine and able to come back. With Campbell saying it doesn’t look good, though, the Lions are going to have to reopen this competition. We’ll see what they do.
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