Detroit Lions 2015: What should we expect?

Lions open preseason on Aug. 13

DETROIT – The NFL regular season is just around the corner, and preseason is only weeks away.

The Detroit Lions will open the NFL preseason on Aug. 13 at Ford Field against the New York Jets. Although the Lions will have many of the same players as they did in 2014, the team could look a bit different.

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THE NEW:

- Haloti Ngata joins the defensive line after the departure of Ndamukong Suh. Ngata was traded to the Lions for draft picks shortly after Suh signed with the Dolphins. Will the 31-year-old mesh well with the new look d-line? The entire defensive scheme will likely change without Suh in the middle. Ngata has noted during off-season workouts that he's having some trouble adjusting to the attacking technique.

- Rookie running back Ameer Abdullah is getting a lot of buzz already. The back was the taken in the 2nd round, but looks to already be working towards a big role in the offense, especially as starting running back Joique Bell recovers from surgery.

- The offensive line will look different without Dominic Raiola. For the first time in 15 seasons, the team will have a new center snapping the ball. The Lions let Raiola go after the 2014 season. Travis Swanson played well last year at guard, and will likely fill that void on the line along side a group of young linemen including Lions first round pick Laken Tomlinson.

THE OLD:

- Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford is entering his seventh season at the helm, coming off an average statistical year, by his standards, but a playoff appearance nonetheless. In 2014, Stafford threw for 4,257 yards, and 22 touchdowns with 12 interceptions. That's the lowest interception count since his rookie season when he threw 20 on only 377 throws. The team seems intent on running the ball even more this year, which could make Stafford's role in the offense less impactful. Will Stafford FINALLY take the next step? Will he beat a team over .500 on the road? Can he win a playoff game?

- Calvin Johnson is and always will be a freak of nature -- the question is -- can he stay healthy? The superstar wide out missed 4 games in 2014, and even though Golden Tate picked up the slack, they would much rather prefer Johnson in the one slot. Even with missing four games, Johnson still totaled another 1,000 yards receiving, but only recorded eight touchdowns.

- The defense comes in with more answers than questions this year, which is unusual for Lions fans. The line backing corps will welcome back Stephen Tulloch after a bad ACL injury benched him early in the season last year. DeAndre Levy and Tahir Whitehead played well in 2014, and second-year linebacker Kyle Van Noy has a chip on his shoulder after a rough, injury-plagued rookie season. Beyond that, promising cornerback Darius Slay and veteran Rasheen Mathis both return to the secondary, along with Glover Quinn and James Ihedibgo. Perhaps the biggest move was keeping defensive coordinator Teryl Austin on-board, who has been able to develop the defense greatly.

- Word out of Lions camp is that second-year tight end Eric Ebron is catching the ball. That is great news. Although, we'll wait for a real game to believe it. The Lions tight ends were a huge disappointment last year, suffering from injuries, dropped balls and bad blocking. Kellen Davis started games. Don't forget that. Eric Ebron, Brandon Pettigrew and Joe Fauria are healthy, again. We'll see if they can make an impact on offense in both the running game and passing game.

THE QUESTIONS:

- Can Jeremy Ross keep his return job? Rookie running back Ameer Abudullah will compete with Ross to return kicks and punts.

- Will Matt Prater make kicks? The new NFL rule will move the extra point back to the 15-yard-line.

- Can offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi run a more fluent offense? In 2014, the Lions ranked 19th in yards per game, with a plus-7 turnover differential. They were also seventh in flags.

- Who will be the backup quarterback? Dan Orlovsky and Kellen Moore are competing for the second spot.


About the Author:

Ken Haddad has proudly been with WDIV/ClickOnDetroit since 2013. He also authors the Morning Report Newsletter and various other newsletters, and helps lead the WDIV Insider team. He's a big sports fan and is constantly sipping Lions Kool-Aid.