Getty D'Andre Swift runs for a big gain in Jacksonville.
The Detroit Lions don’t often have running backs matching records set by Barry Sanders, but after a big Sunday, D’Andre Swift has entered that uncharted territory.
With 116 yards rushing and 2 scores against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Swift became the first rookie since Barry Sander to accomplish the feat as a first year player. That’s obviously very elite company to join in Detroit given how many running struggles the Lions have had and how many players have tried to take the baton since Sanders retired decades ago.
D’Andre Swift is 1st @Lions rookie with 100 rush yards and 2+ rush TD in a game since… BARRY SANDERS.
Along the way, Swift may have proven that he deserves the majority of carries moving forward. The way Swift sees the hole on the field is impressive, and it’s even more impressive how he hits it, accelerates and takes off. A few times when he broke away, it didn’t seem as if Swift was going to be caught. This explosion added an element which was needed in a big way for weeks to the Detroit offense.
More used for pass catching early on, Swift showed serious chops as a runner. The way he reinvigorated the Detroit offensive attack points to a player that should be getting a bit more run early in the season.
In his first big game, Swift earned some more looks with a solid effort. Let’s hope the Lions can give it to him moving forward the rest of the way.
D’Andre Swift Stats
Swift came into the league as a hard charging back out of Georgia who was tough in his career playing in the SEC. With 2,885 yards and 20 touchdowns in his college career, there is little doubting how well Swift would do at toting the rock and fitting in well within Detroit’s backfield situation. Georgia has put a lot of great runners into the league lately, and the hope for Swift is that he can join the squad and become the next runner that follows in the footsteps of players like Todd Gurley, Sony Michel and Nick Chubb. All of them have become great, and Swift could be next as he showed flashes of this brilliance in Week 6.
In the NFL, Swift hasn’t made a huge impact thus far and has been more known for his work as a pass catcher. So far entering this week’s game, he had run for 42 yards and 1 score while catching 13 passes for 124 yards and 1 touchdown. A dropped pass cost Swift and the Lions early, but those days seem long gone now.
Where Lions Running Game Goes Now
Detroit still has a solid running Adrian Peterson and a capable Kerryon Johnson, even though it would seem his role has been diminished significantly moving forward thanks to Swift’s emergence. The Lions need to keep the hot hand going, so it wouldn’t be a shock to see Swift getting more love and more looks.
The Lions are likely to still lean on Peterson a decent bit, but it would seem to be a mistake to take the ball away from Swift given what he’s done already. He earned more love with a big Sunday.
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