Tag: lions news

Lions safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson suffers potential season ending injury

Lions safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson suffers potential season ending injury in Week 2 loss to Seahawks

Let the hits keep coming for the Detroit Lions. Hours after receiving news that pass rusher James Houston was going to be out for the next 6-8 weeks with a fractured ankle, they now have even worse news.

As reported from Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafol, it’s feared that Lions safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson has suffered a torn pectoral muscle. He will be out indefinitely and it’s potentially a season-ending injury.

This off-season, Gardner-Johnson signed a one-year contract with the Detroit Lions. In a short period of time, he had already made an impact in the community and in the locker room. From donating money to the schools in Detroit to bringing a different type of energy to the locker, it was expected for Gardner-Johnson to be a huge playmaker for the Lions.

Through two games with the Lions, he had 13 tackles and two pass deflections. Against the Seahawks in week two, he had 8 tackles. During the game against Seattle, Gardner-Johnson did head to the medical tent but he returned to the game.

When he spoke to reporters after the game, he had stated that he was “fine.” He played 70 of 72 possible snaps for the Lions defense. Now the Lions will have to look to players such as Kerby Joseph, Tracy Walker and Brian Branch to step-up in the absence of Gardner-Johnson.

Film review: C.J. Gardner-Johnson’s debut for the Lions

Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams banged up for the Detroit Lions

Lions WRs Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams left the first joint practice with the Jaguars with leg injuries

The NFL season is a long and grueling one for the players in this league. But nothing feels quite as long as paying attention to your favorite teams training camp to ensure that nobody gets hurt. For some teams, it’s better than others. But there are times that players get bumped and bruised and that seems to be the case for the Detroit Lions after practice on Wednesday.

During the first play of 7-on-7, Amon-Ra St. Brown injured his lower right leg and it appears to be an ankle injury. He ended up getting it taped, and he did not go to the locker room. Instead, he worked through the injury on the side of the field. While it doesn’t seem to be a major injury, it’s still worth monitoring as it could have long-term effects on St. Brown and this Lions offense.

To make matters worse, the Lions also had wide receiver Jameson Williams come up holding his hamstring after running a route. It’s pivotal for him to be on the field as he had already missed time earlier in camp due to a lower-body injury. Recently, he came back to the field and it felt like he was starting to figure things out. Hopefully for Williams, it’s minor and doesn’t keep him sidelined for long.

It’ll be interesting to see if the Lions decide to play either receiver on Saturday with the Jacksonville Jaguars in town. Tickets for the Lions’ second preseason game are still available, or you can watch at home on Saturday while the game will be broadcast on NFL Network at 1 p.m. EST.

Lions sign wide receiver Trey Quinn, waive Tom Kennedy

The Detroit Lions sign wide receiver Trey Quinn, waive WR Tom Kennedy

The Detroit Lions waived wide receiver Tom Kennedy, the team announced on Friday. Kennedy was waived with injury status. To replace Kennedy on the roster, the team signed wide receiver Trey Quinn.

Coming out of SMU for the 2018 NFL Draft, Quinn was a 6’0″ and 203 pound receiver that ran the 40-yard dash in 4.55 seconds and had a 3-cone drill of 6.91 seconds. He originally played football at LSU before transferring to SMU.

When going through the draft process, there was speculation that he could be a 4th or 5th round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. However, he ended up being the Draft’s Mr. Irrelevant as the last pick after he was selected by Washington.

Quinn ended up playing two seasons with Washington before being waived in September of 2020. During that time, he recorded 35 receptions for 273 yards and two touchdowns.

After being put on waivers, he was signed to the Jacksonville Jaguars practice squad. As his practice squad contract expired, he ended up in Las Vegas before being placed on injured reserve.

Since then, he has had a brief stint with the Denver Broncos and ended up being a key contributor at receiver for the Michigan Panthers this spring in the USFL. For the Panthers, he ended up posting 37 receptions for 438 yards and four touchdowns.

As the Lions continue to look for depth at wide receiver, Quinn will look to make the teams 53-man roster. Players such as Marvin Jones and Jameson Williams not practicing due to injury and being on the NFI list will give Quinn the opportunity to compete.

The Georgia Way — Matthew and Kelly Stafford leave Detroit a huge parting gift

As UGA great Matthew Stafford and his family prepare to depart Detroit for Los Angeles, the Lions’ quarterback left one last gift for Motown

As UGA great Matthew Stafford and his family prepare to depart Detroit for Los Angeles, the Lions’ quarterback left one last gift for Motown.

Stafford’s wife, Kelly, posted a statement announcing a $1 million gift to fund the Kelly and Matthew Stafford and Friends Education Center for SAY Detroit, the nonprofit organization founded by sportswriter and author Mitch Albom.

Kelly Stafford posted the following on her Instagram account:

Our final thank you.

There are not enough words to truly express how grateful we are to have lived here for the past 12 years. We came here for football, but we are leaving with a sense of home and endearment. Endearment not only for this city and the Lions organization, but a love for the people who make up this community. Detroit has supported our family not only by showing up on Sundays, but also through our most difficult times. You took us in as your own and made Detroit feel like home and that is what it became, our home.

It has been our goal to always give back to the city. Detroit and its people have blessed us in so many ways, we only hope you have felt our gratitude through our joy of giving back to the city. As we sat down and tried to figure out how to thank you one last time, we felt like words were not sufficient. And so, we have teamed  with Mitch Albom to create an education center that will be attached to the SAY PLAY Center where Stafford Field is also located. The new building will enable the Center to increase its student population who benefit from the center’s academic, athletic and arts programs, and service adults with job training programs, GED classes, and community events. This is the legacy we want to leave behind. We would love for you to be a part of it with us…to be a part of this legacy of making a positive impact in so many Detroiters’ lives. If you would like to get involved, I have placed a link in my bio and in my story so that you will be able to do so. Think of the difference we could make together for the thousands of people in city of Detroit.

You will always remember Matthew Stafford as a Detroit Lions quarterback, but our hope is that you will also remember our family for our love of the Detroit community and its people.

Thank you Detroit, for everything.

#StaffordStrong

The Staffords’ donation will help fund a 20,000-square-foot facility on the grounds of Detroit’s Lipke Park. The building will include classrooms, learning labs and an auditorium that will help students with vocational and technical training.

The project is the Staffords’ second significant donation to the center. In 2015, Kelly and Matthew pledged $1 million after the park was closed due to city budget cuts. This is just a long list of philanthropic contributions made by the family. In August, the Stafford family donated $1.5 million to the University of Georgia’s new social justice initiative.

Stafford was the No.1 draft pick in the 2009 NFL draft. He has played 12 seasons for Detroit and holds nearly every career passing record for the franchise.

If you would like to join the Staffords’ philanthropy with a donation, it can be done here.

New Lions coaches has big plans for former Georgia RB D’Andre Swift

Expect more touches for former Georgia football RB D’Andre Swift going forward with the Detroit Lions.

Expect former Georgia running back D’Andre Swift to receive a few more touches per game under new offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn.

The former LA Chargers head coach Lynn, who was hired in late January to run the offense in Detroit, spoke to how he believes Swift should become a more significant part of the Lions’ passing game.

He also added that Detroit needs to “find someone else to go with him (Swift).”

Lynn is not the only new coach who has big plans for Swift, a former second round pick who just wrapped his rookie season. New running backs coach Deuce Staley added to what Lynn said, noting that Swift is a special player who should be seeing 25 touches per game.

 “A lot of people think you got to go have 20 carries as running back to be successful, and sometimes you do,” Staley said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “But touches, when you have a good back, an electrifying back, touches are definitely more important. You can get 18 carries and seven touches as far as receptions and you have 25 touches, which is what you want from your star back. When I look at D’Andre, I do think he’s a three-down back and like I said, he has some special traits I can’t wait to get my hands on, so I’m excited about that.”

Swift’s rookie season concluded with the Philadelphia native rushing for 521 yards and 8 touchdowns on 114 carries. he also 46 passes for 357 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Former Georgia QB Matt Stafford attracting players to join him in LA

Per Adam Schefter, some of the NFL’s biggest names are looking to join Matt Stafford on the Los Angeles Rams.

Los Angeles has always been an attractive option for big name athletes. But with former No. 1 overall pick Matthew Stafford now quarterbacking for the Los Angeles Rams, the attraction to play in one of America’s biggest markets has skyrocketed.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Stafford is receiving a lot of interest from some of the NFL’s biggest names, who want to join the former Georgia Bulldog in Los Angeles.

“Shortly after the Rams and Detroit Lions agreed to a trade that would send Stafford out West, the quarterback began receiving texts from players who wanted to come join him in Los Angeles, per sources,” Schefter wrote on Sunday.

Lions free agent wide receiver Marvin Jones is one of those players – and he’s been a favorite target of Stafford for the last five seasons in Detroit.

Over the last five years, Jones has 4,296 receiving yards with the Lions.

Watch: Former UGA WR Javon Wims makes big TD catch in Bears win

Former Georgia wide receiver Javon Wins played a crucial part in Chicago’s comeback win over the Detroit Lions, scoring a late touchdown from one yard out to cut the lead to three. It was Wims’ only catch on the day, but boy it was a big one. Former …

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Former Georgia wide receiver Javon Wins played a crucial part in Chicago’s comeback win over the Detroit Lions, scoring a late touchdown from one yard out to cut the lead to three.

It was Wims’ only catch on the day, but boy it was a big one.

The Bears would intercept Matt Stafford on the next drive and go on to a score the game-winning touchdown.

The game ended in unfortunate fashion for the Lions when former UGA RB D’Andre Swift, who was making his rookie-debut, dropped what would have been the game-winning pass from fellow Dawg Stafford.

Watch: D’Andre Swift scores first NFL TD, drops game-winner

Watch as former Georgia football RB D’Andre Swift scored his first NFL touchdown with the Detroit Lions.

Former Georgia running back D’Andre Swift took the field Sunday for the Detroit Lions in his first game as an NFL player.

The Bears defeated the Lions 27-23 in the season opener.

In his rookie debut against Roquan Smith and the Chicago Bears, Swift saw minimal touches, taking three carries for 8 yards and catching three passes for 15 yards.

Swift did score the Lions’ only rushing touchdown, though, punching it in from the goal line.

Unfortunately, Swift had a crucial drop in the final seconds of the game that would have sent the Lions home with a win.

 

 

Daily Fantasy: The one Lions player you need to start in Week 1 on DraftKings

Marvin Jones Jr. is a good value in Week 1 against the Bears.

Expectations are relatively low for the Lions this season, but they should still be competitive as long as Matthew Stafford can stay healthy. And if he does, expect strong seasons from Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones Jr.

Specifically in Week 1, Jones is the Lions player you should start in daily fantasy football on DraftKings.

He’s relatively cheap at only $5,500, checking in $700 under Golladay. Jones averaged more fantasy points per week than just about every receiver near his price range, except for DeVante Parker ($6,000) and Julian Edelman ($6,000).

Jones has performed well in eight career games against the Bears, too. Though he only has two touchdowns, he averages 3.5 catches and 61.3 yards per game against them. In their two meetings last year, Jones caught eight passes for 114 yards and a touchdown against the Bears.

Outside of Kyle Fuller, who will likely draw Golladay in coverage, the Bears aren’t exactly rich with talent at cornerback. Jones could match up with rookie Jaylon Johnson or Buster Skrine, both of whom would be favorable coverage assignments for Jones.

With Stafford fully healthy and ready to take shots downfield, Jones should get back to the way he played in 2017 when he averaged a league-high 18.0 yards per catch and topped 1,100 yards receiving for the year. This is a good matchup for the veteran receiver, assuming Golladay draws Fuller in coverage.

Matt Stafford placed on Lions’ Covid-19 reserve list

Former Georgia quarterback Matt Stafford has been placed on the Detroit Lions COVID-19 reserve list. Being placed on this list means Stafford has either tested positive for the virus or has come in close contact with someone who is infected. …

Former Georgia quarterback Matt Stafford has been placed on the Detroit Lions COVID-19 reserve list.

Being placed on this list means Stafford has either tested positive for the virus or has come in close contact with someone who is infected.

Stafford is the eighth Lions player to be placed on this list, joining fellow Bulldog Isaac Nauta.

This news likely does not impact his eligibility next season. Players do, however, have the option to opt out of the upcoming season due to the virus.

Stafford does have four children and a wife who is one-year removed from brain surgery at home. Stafford has not opted out. If he chooses to do so, he has until August 3rd to make that decision.