On Saturday, the Detroit Lions took care of business in what was a must-win game over the Chicago Bears. Unfortunately, despite winning the game, the Lions lost three players to injury.
Though head coach Jim Caldwell was not willing to admit it following the game, there was little question that Theo Riddick was No. 1 on the running back depth chart against the Bears, despite Ameer Abdullah being active. When all was said and done, Riddick played in 33 of the Lions 63 offensive snaps while rookie Tion Green played in 23 and Abdullah was on the field for just eight.
Lions final HB snap count:
Theo Riddick 33
Tion Green 23
Ameer Abdullah 8
Out of 63 plays— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) December 17, 2017
But that snap count could look different when the Lions take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 16. Riddick, who has had issues with his wrists in the past, suffered an injury to his wrist during the Lions first possession of the second half. This is obviously very concerning, especially when taking into consideration that he had double wrist surgery in the offseason.
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Caldwell did not go into too much depth when asked about the extent of Riddick’s injury.
From MLive:
“Some of those things are difficult to tell,” coach Jim Caldwell said. “I mean, obviously he had some issues — surgeries — on those things. So something may have popped up on it. Not certain the extent of it. We’ll take a look at it.”
In addition to Riddick suffering a wrist injury, starting offensive guard T.J. Lang and receiver TJ Jones were also hurt during the game.
Lang left in the second quarter after reaggravating an injury to his foot, an issue he has been dealing with for a few weeks.
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Caldwell realizes what the Lions offensive line has dealt with this season, especially with all of the injuries.
From Detroit News:
“I think everybody kind of picks on them once in a while,” Lions coach Jim Caldwell said. “I’m going to just tell you something. It is not easy to do what they do. They come in, they don’t blink, they line up, they play wherever we ask them to play, they get the job done and well enough for us to get a victory. I commend those guys. They work at it. They’re quiet men that just focus on the task.”
TJ Jones, who caught a 3-yard touchdown pass from Matthew Stafford in the second quarter, left the game in the fourth quarter with a shoulder injury after serving on the punt coverage team.
Fortunately for the Lions, they will have one extra day to heal up before they take on the Bengals next Sunday in Cincinnati next Sunday. It’s an extra day it looks like they will need.
