Detroit Lions shake up the roster; C.J. Anderson, Josh Johnson released

The Detroit Lions made some roster moves on Tuesday which included the release of running back C.J. Anderson and backup quarterback Josh Johnson.

The Detroit Lions can’t be happy about how they played through the first two games of the new regular season, although their record sits at 1-0-1, placing them second in the NFC North. Yet, a 27-27 tie to the upstart Arizona Cardinals in Week One and a slim three-point victory over the Los Angeles Chargers in a mistake-riddle matchup gives them little confidence moving forward.

So the Lions made some roster moves on Tuesday to improve their depth. Detroit released running back C.J. Anderson and quarterback Josh Johnson. And in their place, the Lions added former New York Giants running back Paul Perkins and former Cincinnati Bengals’ passer Jeff Driskel.

The Lions signed Anderson to a one-year deal back in April as a short-yardage specialist, in a similar role to what LeGarrette Blount did for Detroit last season. The 28-year old veteran running back was hot off a late stint with the Los Angeles Rams last season, helping them reach the Super Bowl.

But Anderson appeared sluggish in his only two games in the Motor City, averaging a lowly 2.7 yards per carry. Against the Chargers on Sunday, he had eight yards on five carries while rookie Ty Johnson posted 30 yards with the same amount of carries.

The Lions were awarded Perkins off the waiver wire from the Giants. The former fifth-round pick out of UCLA in 2016 ran for 456 yards averaging 4.1 per carry as a rookie. Perkins did not play last season due to a pectoral injury and was a healthy scratch in New York through the first two games of this season.

Despite the presence of Paul Perkins, it’s sixth-round rookie running back Ty Johnson that figures to get an increase in opportunities as the primary backup to starter Kerryon Johnson in Detroit moving forward.