It has been a long offseason for the Detroit Lions. After coming off of a 9-7 season which left them on the outside looking in as far as the NFL Playoffs go, they decided to cut ties with Jim Caldwell and to hire former New England Patriots defensive coordinator, Matt Patricia as their new head coach.
As far as the talent on the field goes, the Lions have looked less than stellar in the preseason and though they have yet to play a meaningful game, general manager Bob Quinn has been doing his best to solidify the roster.
One area that Quinn vowed to improve this offseason is the running game and that includes upgrading his stable of running backs.
According to reports, the Lions are signing former Philadelphia Eagles running back Donnel Pumphrey to the practice squad.
“The #Lions are signing former #Eagles RB Donnel Pumphrey, per @MikeGarafolo and me. Some help in the backfield.”
The #Lions are signing former #Eagles RB Donnel Pumphrey, per @MikeGarafolo and me. Some help in the backfield.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 4, 2018
Pumphrey, who was originally selected by the Eagles fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft, missed his entire rookie season with a hamstring injury and was recently waived by the defending Super Bowl champions.
While at San Diego State, Pumphrey put up some very impressive numbers, including during his senior season when he rushed for 2,133 yards. In his career with the Aztecs, he put up 6,405 rushing yards, which is the current FBS record.
Here are some highlights from Pumphrey’s college days.
As far as improving the running back stable goes, Quinn has certainly made an effort. The Lions signed LeGarrette Blount and drafted Kerryon Johnson in the second round during the offseason to go along with third-down specialist Theo Riddick and the shifty Ameer Abdullah.
“The Lions are signing former Eagles RB Donnel Pumphrey, per @rapsheet. Would RT for credit, but he’s blocked me. The big question is, what does this mean for Ameer Abdullah?”
The Lions are signing former Eagles RB Donnel Pumphrey, per @rapsheet. Would RT for credit, but he's blocked me.
The big question is, what does this mean for Ameer Abdullah?
— kyle meinke (@kmeinke) September 4, 2018
Speculation continues that Abdullah could be a trade chip moving forward and if that is the case, Pumphrey could slide right in from the practice squad to take his place.
