Tag: Calvin Johnson

Lions look to leave Washington with second win ever

The Detroit Lions will travel to Washington where wins have historically been hard to come by. In fact, they’ve only won there once — ever.

The Detroit Lions will travel to Washington on Sunday, where wins have historically been hard to come by.

Overall, Washington leads the series 30-14, although, the Lions have won the last four meetings, including a 2013 win at FedEx Field, which marked the first time the Lions had beaten the Redskins on the road — ever.

A trip down memory lane

Until 2013, the Lions had made 21 trips to D.C. and suburban Maryland, and then traveled back home with a loss.

Matthew Stafford led the Lions with 385 yards and two touchdowns. Calvin Johnson finished the game with six receptions for 115 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter that would prove to be the dagger.

The Lions’ tough defensive unit, led by Ndamukong Suh, contained Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III en route to nine hits, two sacks, three forced fumbles (one lost) and an interception.

When the Lions (3-6-1) take the field against Washington (1-9) on Sunday, it’s hard to fathom that they will be aiming for only their second all-time win in the nation’s capital. Nonetheless, they need to take advantage of key matchups and clean up their defensive play. Erik Schlitt gave us the Honolulu Blueprint for the Lions to come back to Detroit with win No. 4 on the season.

Can Kenny Golladay develop into the Lions’ next Calvin Johnson?

Could Detroit Lions wide receiver Kenny Golladay be the team’s next Calvin Johnson? The numbers suggest he has the potential to do so.

Don’t call him Babytron because he wants to earn his own nickname. However, it is hard to ignore the parallels between Detroit Lions wide receiver Kenny Golladay and Megatron himself, Calvin Johnson.

When Johnson decided to abruptly retire following the 2015 season, it left the Detroit Lions fan base starving for another All-Pro wide receiver that could simply jump higher, run faster and break tackles the same way that Johnson did for the better part of nine seasons.

Two years later, the Lions took Golladay out of Northern Illinois in the 3rd round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Have the Lions in fact found their next All-Pro wide receiver? Let’s take a look.

Tale of The Tape

Through the first 35 games of their careers:

  • Johnson had 145 receptions for 2368 yards with 16 touchdowns
  • Golladay sits at 136 receptions for 2337 yards and 16 touchdowns

As it stands, Golladay is on pace to finish his third season with 67 catches, 1238 yards, and 14 trips to the end zone. After this season is over, barring any setbacks and Golladay maintaining his pace, here is where he could potentially stack up against Johnson:

  • Johnson: 193 receptions, 3071 yards, 21 touchdowns in 45 games
  • Golladay: 165 receptions, 2778 yards, 24 touchdowns in 42 games

It is important to note that Johnson became the Lions second receiving option behind Roy Williams in the second game of his 2007 rookie season, while Golladay was largely the third option behind Golden Tate and Marvin Jones Jr. during his first year and a half in the league.

Is Golladay the next superstar in Detroit?

While the wound may still feel fresh to Lions fans, and it may seem a bit much to look into the future, given the current state of the franchise, Golladay does possess the physical attributes, skill set, and production values to be compared to Johnson.

It’s possible Golladay could even pass Johnson on the all-time lists in the Lions franchise — especially if he can stay on the field more than Johnson was able to in the latter part of his career.

Ultimately time will tell, but this tale of the tape should give Lions fans a beacon of hope that they have another superstar to pair with Matthew Stafford.