Detroit Lions: D’Andre Swift is more rotation than replacement

Some believe the selection of running back D’Andre Swift is an indictment of Kerryon Johnson. But it’s actually more about rotation than replacement.

For the third time in the past six years, the Detroit Lions selected a running back in the second round of the NFL draft. That streak started back in 2015 with the selection of Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah with the 54th overall pick.

In 2018, the Lions traded up to the 43rd overall selection to draft Kerryon Johnson out of Auburn. Last month during the 2020 NFL Draft, Detroit acquired Georgia running back D’Andre Swift with the 35th overall selection.

For several years, the Lions have been investing high draft picks in an effort to improve their running game. That includes spending high picks on running backs, offensive lineman, and even a first-round tight end.

So has that investment paid off in Detroit? Last season, the Lions ranked 21st in the NFL in rushing yards, averaging 103.1 per contest and finishing the season with a record of 3-12-1, their worst since 2009. The year before, the Lions’ rushing attack ranked 23rd. And in 2017 it was dead last, averaging a pedestrian 76.3 rushing yards per game.

But the Lions’ recent struggles have been due to injury. Both to starting quarterback Matthew Stafford, who missed eight games last season due to a back injury, and to Kerryon Johnson. Over his first two seasons in Detroit, Johnson has missed a total of 14 games due to knee injuries.

So when the Lions opted to use another second-round selection on a running back just two drafts removed from Johnson’s selection, some believed that was an indictment on Kerryon and his future in the Motor City. But it was more about giving the team something they’ve been striving to field for years … a quality running back rotation.

Here’s how Justin Rogers of The Detroit News responded to a recent mailbag question about Swift’s selection making Johnson a potential second-round bust.

"“{Johnson] was never drafted to be a bellcow. The team always anticipated a backfield rotation, and tried to find a complement in veterans such as LeGarrette Blount and C.J. Anderson, with little success. The addition of Swift is an acknowledgment that it’s difficult to find reasonably priced talent on the free-agent market, more than a condemnation of Johnson’s future prospects.”"

Fielding a quality running back rotation has been a goal of the current regime in Detroit over the past two seasons under head coach Matt Patricia. In 2018, Johnson’s rookie year, the Lions signed veteran back LeGarrette Blount to be his running mate. Blount averaged just 2.7 yards per carry and wasn’t re-signed at the end of the season.

Last year, Motown added free agent C.J. Anderson to fill Blount’s role. But Anderson was surprisingly released by the Lions just two games into the season.

And prior to the selection of Swift, bruiser back Bo Scarbrough, who filled in admirably for Johnson last year, was believed to be just the latest member of Detroit’s rushing rotation, version 3.0, Instead, the Lions pivoted and chose to once again invest into the position with a high-draft pick.

In D’Andre Swift, the Detroit Lions weren’t looking to land a replacement for the injury-prone Kerryon Johnson (although he’s certainly insurance). Instead, it appears to be part of the team’s ongoing efforts to field a successful running back rotation with two recent second-rounders now leading the charge.