The Detroit Lions will kick off training camp next month with a slew of unanswered questions. Obviously, that’s to be expected following an offseason full of so much change in the Motor City.
The Lions are new from top to bottom, with a new front office, coaching staff, and several new faces along the roster. The most impactful change being under center after the new regime traded longtime quarterback Matthew Stafford to the Los Angeles Rams for several high draft picks and passer Jared Goff.
The position that experienced the most turnover this offseason is undoubtedly wide receiver. The Lions parted ways with the majority of last year’s starters, allowing Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones Jr., Danny Amendola, Jamal Agnew, and Mohamed Sanu to find new homes.
In their place, the Lions signed several veterans to one-year deals in free agency. The patchwork receiver corps now includes Tyrell Williams, Breshad Perriman, Chad Hansen, Kalif Raymond, and Damion Ratley. They joined an existing depth chart with Quintez Cephus, Victor Bolden, Geronimo Allison, and Tom Kennedy.
The Lions also added a few rookies to the roster at wideout. USC’s Amon-Ra St. Brown is the only drafted rookie of the bunch. The undrafted rookie free agent signings included Sage Surratt out of Wake Forest and Javon McKinley out of Notre Dame.
Here’s how Eric Woodyard of ESPN.com responded when asked what was the Lions’ biggest question still to be answered in a recent article titled Rating NFL offseasons for all 32 teams.
"“Who will Goff be throwing the ball to? During minicamp, Tyrell Williams and rookie Amon-Ra St. Brown were both solid, but Victor Bolden and Kalif Raymond have been pleasant surprises as well, according to a source. The competition at the position is wide open and training camp will likely determine who fulfills that role.”"
Undoubtedly, the connection between quarterback Jared Goff and his new wide receiver corps will be the most-watched and entertaining aspect of training camp this summer for the Detroit Lions. The hope is someone out of this relatively unknown group emerges as the new number one wide receiver in the Motor City and is able to become a breakout star during the regular season.