Late season issues have plagued the Detroit Lions over the past number of years. The team has never had a solid answer opposite Calvin Johnson at the wide receiver position either. It appears that the Lions have finally found their answer in former Seattle Seahawks receiver Golden Tate. The arrival of Tate may finally signal Detroit moving to the next level and actually making a serious run at a division title if not more in 2014. If it is going to happen though for the Lions, it needs to be this season.
Tate had 64 catches for 898 yards and five touchdowns last season for the Super Bowl champions. He comes to a Detroit offense that has added Eric Ebron at tight end in the draft as well which gives Matthew Stafford two more threats in the passing game. It doesn’t mean that the Lions are going to forget about the run game with a combination of Reggie Bush and Joique Bell but bringing Tate in should take some pressure off of Johnson on the outside. The experts in Detroit believe the move helps Johnson and Tate.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tab1GjpiE_g
Megatron has found himself dealing with double teams a lot during his career in the Motor City and Detroit has tried everyone from Nate Burleson to Kris Durham as the secondary receiver. None of those have worked. Tate brings a proven work ethic to the table and has got better and better during his four years in Seattle where the pass game hasn’t been a priority all the time. The Lions are going to be throwing the ball all over the place in 2014.
The NFC North is loaded with the Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears both having strong offenses as well. It just means the Lions need to take it to the next level. Tate will be able to do that. There should be no experts surprised if Detroit wins the division this season. It all boils down to whether or not the attention that Tate takes off of Johnson means enough to get the Lions over the top. However, if everything works out and the team’s defense does what it is capable of doing, Detroit should be a playoff team in 2014.
This must be the season to do it though. It appears changes are coming to the defense and the offense can’t do it all. If the Lions are going to make a serious run at a conference championship, the 2014 season will need to be the one to do it in.