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The Detroit Lions didn’t make major changes to their quarterback room ahead of the 2022 season, and in one case, that might not benefit them at all.
Not only is Jared Goff returning, but his backup quarterbacks as well in David Blough and Tim Boyle. Last season, when Goff couldn’t play due to injury, the Lions turned to Boyle and will be likely to do so again in 2022. That isn’t good news according to a new ranking list.
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Pro Football Network ranked every backup situation in the NFL and the Lions’ situation didn’t come in that high at all. In fact, it placed 30th in the NFL out of 32 teams with Tim Boyle, meaning only two teams have worse. Writer Mike Kaye admitted that in his mind, Boyle might be a little too inconsistent to be considered stable.
“Boyle was asked to start three games last season, and the results were rough. While he did show some flashes of competence, the Lions can’t afford to have Jared Goff go down again this year. The previous sentence explains why Boyle is this low,” Kaye wrote within the piece.
To say Boyle is uninspiring as a backup could be an understatement, but the Lions have kept him around, so they will be hoping that he can improve. This ranking might not give much chance of that happening, though, given how dreadfully he has placed.
Lions Stuck With 2021 Backups This Offseason
Early on in the offseason, the Lions elected to stay with Boyle and Blough, re-signing both to new deals. The former was Detroit’s backup last year, seeing action in five games while making three starts. Boyle threw 3 touchdowns to 6 interceptions, and as Kaye wrote, would look good at times while also looking bad at times. That inconsistency is not what the Lions are looking for at backup. Blough played more during the preseason, but was never given a chance to show his stuff in the regular season, even as Boyle struggled at times. That was confusing, given he’s thrown for 1,033 yards and 4 touchdowns in the NFL with 7 interceptions. That’s not much worse than Boyle. Still, Boyle had decent moments such as this throw against Atlanta:
Neither player looks like a long-term solution, and the hope is the Lions don’t have to use Boyle much this season if at all. Still, injuries do happen in the league, so it might not be a comfort to see the Lions prepared to roll with the same guy who was below average at best last year.
Boyle’s Career Stats & Highlights
Since joining the Packers prior to signing in Detroit, Boyle has received a cult following with fans thanks to the way he performs in the offseason, training camp and preseason. Boyle hasn’t registered and NFL touchdown or interception, and has just 15 passing yards to his credit. In spite of that, Boyle has put up some decent stats in college, throwing for 3,371 yards, 12 touchdowns and 26 interceptions. He played at UCONN before transferring to Eastern Kentucky. Boyle played for the last three seasons in Green Bay in mostly mop up duty before coming to Detroit.
Here’s some highlights of Boyle while playing for the Packers in the preseason:
Boyle has shown an ability to make good passes and lead confidently, so the Lions will have to hope he can shake off the mistakes and improve. At this point, though, not many have faith in the Lions backup situation or Boyle in particular.
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