6 teams who could make Lions an offer they shouldn’t refuse for D’Andre Swift

As his future with the team reaches a tipping point, these teams could make the Detroit Lions an offer they shouldn’t refuse for running back D’Andre Swift.

Three seasons into his NFL career, Detroit Lions running back D’Andre Swift has been a mix of promise and disappointment. He should be regarded as one of the top dual-threat backs in the league, but he has missed time every season and fallen short of expectations.

Colton Pouncy of The Athletic recently offered up the idea that Swift may not have a future with the Lions beyond next season, the final year of his rookie contract since he was an early second-round pick in 2020.

Just this past week at the NFL Combine, here’s what Lions head coach Dan Campbell had to say about Swift.

"We’re going to start all over from scratch again. Let’s find another way to see if we can help him stay on the field, you know? I already know he’s doing that for himself, so we’ve got to do that on our end. What can we do better by him? Can we? Because he’s too talented. He’s too talented to not have out there. He’s an explosive athlete.”"

Campbell started by noting the team’s plan to managed Swift’s workload in training camp and such last year, in order to keep him healthy. It just didn’t work out, obviously.

It’s worth noting Swift’s injuries have not been of the recurring soft tissue nature–ankle, shoulder, concussion. So what can be done to prevent those kind of things, from the team or player’s perspective, is hard to pinpoint. As much as Duce Staley was/is well thought of, new Lions’ running backs coach Scottie Montgomery might turn out to be a better fit for Swift.

All in all, it’s worth wondering if there will be a tipping point for the Lions with Swift. They could just let him go next offseason as a free agent, or a trade lingers as a possibility–if not this offseason, then possibly by the deadline during next season. The ship has all but surely sailed on any idea he’ll get any sort of contract extension this offseason.

Here are six teams who could make an offseason trade offer for Swift the Lions shouldn’t refuse.

6 teams who could make the Lions an offseason trade offer they shouldn’t refuse for D’Andre Swift

6. Kansas City Chiefs

Doing business with the Chiefs, or watching them do business, is today’s version of what doing business with the Patriots was years ago. The other 31 teams go “what am I missing?” when they make transactions, and you may be inviting yourself to be fleeced by Brett Veach by entering into trade talks with him.

But the Chiefs theoretically have an opening in their running back rotation. Jerick McKinnon is a free agent, and Clyde Edwards-Helaire could be traded for a metaphorical bag of footballs after the team inevitably declines his fifth-year option.

Swift went three picks after Edwards-Helaire in the 2020 draft, and there was a case then (as there may still be, even now) that the Chiefs should have drafted him instead. They could give Swift the change of scenery he’s headed for anyway, and may need, while giving the Lions a Day 2 or early Day 3 pick to get him.

5. Cincinnati Bengals

The Bengals may be headed for a full backfield reset this offseason. Joe Mixon is being prominently mentioned as a potential or likely cap casualty, with general manager Duke Tobin seemingly saying it all this week at the NFL Combine to evade having to give a concrete answer, and Samaje Perine is a free agent.

With big contracts coming for some key offensive players (Joe Burrow, JaMarr Chase, Tee Higgins?), the Bengals need to get younger and cheaper at running back. They could draft someone, and adding someone like Swift entering the final year of his rookie contract makes somes sense too.

4. Baltimore Ravens

The Ravens have rotated running backs in a run-heavy approach for years, sometimes by injury-forced necessity, and Kenyan Drake and Justice Hill are free agents. J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards are solid to above average, but they’ve not exactly been pictures of durability.

New offensive coordinator Todd Monken may push for the front office to add a more versatile guy to the backfield, independent of how the Lamar Jackson situation turns out or how things will naturally shift from how Greg Roman called an offense. Swift fits that bill, and there’s no need to commit to him long-term.

3. Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins may be compelled to just re-sign running backs Raheem Mostert and Jeff Wilson. But they could pivot to other options, if not in free agency than possibly the trade market, to replace one or both of them. Mike McDaniel is sure to keep leaning into his 49ers roots to have mutiple backs in a rotation, but they don’t really have a back who is the kind of passing game threat Swift can be.

The Dolphins can’t just settle for what they have, as they look to compete with the Buffalo Bills and the rising New York Jets in the AFC East. Swift, if/when healthy, would raise the ceiling of their offense in a sneaky fashion.

2. Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons were one of the run-heaviest offenses in the NFL last season, as you’d tend to be with Marcus Mariota as your starting quarterback for much of the season. While Tyler Allgeier showed plenty of promise, general manager Terry Fontenot expressed a desire to keep adding to the running back stable.

"Man, he’s (Allgeier) a good player, (but) you always need multiple at that position,” Fontenot said. “I think having one running back and just carrying the ball all the time, I think that’s kind of rare and unique for somebody. You need to have multiple running backs to preserve their career to take care of them."

No matter what the Falcons do at quarterback this offseason, it’s hard to see them straying far from a run-heavy offensive approach next season. So the concept of having multiple capable backs is not a stretch.

Swift has shown he can’t hold up if given a heavy workload all the time. Allgeier would and should stlil be the No. 1 back next season, and Cordarrelle Patterson is under contract. But Swift can at least offer the Falcons something interesting as a passing game weapon.

1. Houston Texans

Dameon Pierce proved to be a keeper as a rookie last year, with 939 rushing yards in 13 games before an ankle injury ended his season early. While he wasn’t a dud as a pass catcher (30 receptions), the Texans can’t be too choosy when it comes to adding talent to their team and Swift might be a fit.

In terms of potential draft pick return, with 11 total picks and five of the top-73 picks in April’s draft (including two third-rounders), the Texans might be the Lions’ best potential trade partner in an offseason deal for Swift.