Lions WR Calvin Johnson aggravated an ankle injury against Buffalo, and I’m hearing he could miss a week or two because of it.
That would probably be a smart move by Detroit coach Jim Caldwell, because in 37 snaps last week against the Jets and 28 snaps Sunday against the Bills, Johnson was invisible. Totals: three targets, three catches, 19 yards, no touchdowns.
The Lions should concentrate on getting Johnson healthy the next two weeks, hold him out against Minnesota and New Orleans, and hope he can play in 20 days in London against the Falcons.
The Lions have essentially been without Johnson the last two weeks anyway. As the story points out, it makes a lot of sense to make sure he's healthy before getting back out on the field again, even if it means missing time. Golden Tate becomes the team's WR1 and could draw tougher coverage as a result, but has excelled the past two weeks with a combined line of 15-250-1 on 19 targets. Jeremy Ross, Corey Fuller and Ryan Broyles could all be more involved with Johnson out.
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