Getty Cam Akers celebrates a touchdown in 2022.
Most of the 2022 season, the Detroit Lions haven’t struggled on offense, and have been able to put it together in a big way on that side of the ball.
Whether with the run or the pass, the Lions have been in good shape and have a top-six offense in the NFL at this point in time. On the ground, the Lions have been just as solid, and have a top 10 ground attack right now.
For some, however, that doesn’t change the team’s need for reinforcements at the position. With Cam Akers of the Los Angeles Rams now potentially on the block, many see a chance for the Lions to pounce on a meaningful upgrade to their team.
CBS Sports analyst Cody Benjamin recently put together a list of fits for the running back across the league. The Lions were included in the fits if traded section, and the implication by Benjamin was that the team needed some depth at the position to feel good about their future.
“For all D’Andre Swift’s talent, he’s yet to stay healthy headlining Detroit’s backfield, and Dan Campbell’s team is built to establish the run, thanks to both its personnel and coaching staff. Lions general manager Brad Holmes was the Rams’ director of college scouting when Los Angeles drafted Akers, and assistant GM Ray Agnew was also in the Rams’ front office at the time,” Benjamin wrote.
Naturally, the connection to the Detroit brass makes sense for Akers, but it might be a bit foolish for the Lions to deplete a draft resource to select a player that doesn’t fill a huge need for the team.
Detroit’s ground game is solid right now, but all it takes is a few injuries to shake that up. Perhaps that’s what Benjamin sees as the biggest reason for a fit between the sides.
So far, any conjecture about the Detroit trade deadline approach has centered around the team’s potential involvement in the market for defensive players. Taking a look at Akers would represent a departure from this.
Akers’ Career Stats & Highlights
Since coming into the league in 2020 out of Florida State as a second-round pick, Akers hasn’t made a huge impact on the league with just 779 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns to go with 16 yards and one receiving touchdown.
It’s fair to remember that Akers did miss the entirety of the 2021 season with a torn Achilles suffered while working out before the season, and has been battling back. He claimed a Super Bowl ring for his work, but didn’t do much on the field. In 2022, he has just 161 yards to his credit and one touchdown.
Akers has plenty of youth and upside, and could be part of the depth solution for the team moving forward if a move is eventually made.
Lions Running Back Depth Seems Solid
If the Lions were to make a move for a player like Akers, it would be purely due to concerns they may have about depth given the injury struggles of D’Andre Swift so far this season.
Swift is again looking injury-prone after having an ankle and shoulder ailment in the first few weeks of the year. The Lions need a healthy Swift to make their offense more diverse, so the focus should be on how to make his touches count.
Jamaal Williams is looking more than capable of carrying the load on the ground with 332 yards and six touchdowns, and Craig Reynolds offers the team a solid change-of-pace along with Justin Jackson.
The team doesn’t need Swift to dominate the carries, and instead, they should look to maximize the return they can get from him when he is targeted with both the run and pass.
Adding a player like Akers, who is a bonafide NFL running back, would only help in this regard. However, with Williams and Reynolds looking more than capable, is he really a need?
That will be for the Lions to sort out, but for now, some see the answer to that question as a resounding yes.