Caldwell Praises Young Players Riddick, Jones For Improved Play
By Ashley Scoby
@AshleyScoby
At 6-9, and with their playoff hopes eliminated weeks ago, the Lions have had few reasons for optimism. But the team has seen a few young players, especially on offense, perform and prove the future of the franchise isn't all dark.
Theo Riddick, for one, has shot himself into the spotlight on several occasions, especially with his ability to stop on a dime and fake out defenders like he's in a cartoon. His teammates call him "Dead Leg." Although he started out the season with limited fanfare, Riddick is one of the more important components to the future of the Lions' offense.
Especially since Jim Bob Cooter took over the play-calling, Riddick has been a more integral part of the offensive game plan. And he's produced. Against San Francisco, he broke the franchise record for receiving yards by a running back (he has 668 this season).
Riddick was certainly used more against the 49ers than he had been in the past, but head coach Jim Caldwell denied that the team was testing him out to see what he could do.
"No, there was nothing exploratory about that," he said. "I know you guys kind of believe in doing experiments. I believe in trying to get ourselves in the best position to win and we do things according to what we think best-suits us for that game against that particular team. So it just so happened that those particular plays were called, so he got a couple more carries."
Riddick carried the ball seven times for 20 yards on Sunday, matching his season-high for rushing attempts. And although he's seen more and more time as a traditional running back lately, as opposed to a slot receiver or a back catching passes out of the backfield, he still isn't seen as a grind-it-out, 30-carries-a-game player.
"I just think that, for a guy like that who has the kind of skill level that he has, you don't want to pigeonhole him," Caldwell said. "He does play every down for us. He plays some first down, he certainly plays the other two downs, but what you're talking about is in there for 20 or 30 carries. I'm not certain that suits him, but he could. I'm sure we could stick him in there and bang it around for a long period of time with him, but I'm not certain that's his ball game. I'm not certain that's his strength."
Caldwell also heaped praise on receiver TJ Jones, who has played well in a limited role this season. He caught his first career touchdown pass Sunday against the 49ers. He's also seen an increased role towards the end of the season; he was targeted eight times against St. Louis and has caught nine passes in the last four games, after catching only one the rest of the season.
"He's really got a huge upside when you look at him," Caldwell said of Jones. "He's got return ability, he's faster than what you think, he's tough, he can catch the ball in traffic and I just think he, he hasn't reached the pinnacle yet in his career, but I just think he's got a real bright future ahead of him."