It’s been several weeks since we’ve seen Lions running back D’Andre Swift in action. Swift has been sidelined by a shoulder injury since landing hard on the Ford Field turf in the Thanksgiving loss to the Chicago Bears. But the Lions are not ending Swift’s season early.
Coach Dan Campbell made that clear in his press conference prior to Wednesday’s practice session in Allen Park.
“We’ll shut him down after Green Bay,” Campbell said.
Campbell still sees value in letting Swift play in the final two games, Sunday’s trip to Seattle and the Week 18 finale at home against the Green Bay Packers.
It will be interesting to see how Swift integrates into the offense. He was the team’s leading target in the passing game before getting injured, with 56 receptions on 70 targets that gained 429 yards. In his absence, the Lions have leaned more heavily on downfield passes and more aggressive play-calling — and it’s worked well, relatively speaking.
Swift had struggled running the ball until his final two full games before the injury. In those two games he rushed for 266 yards on 47 carries, a stellar 5.7 yards per carry. Prior to that, Swift netted just 289 rushing yards on 90 carries, a 3.2 yards per carry average that ranks among the NFL’s worst.
