ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) -Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford didn’t blame last weekend’s poor performance on the absence of his four top receivers.
The No. 1 pick does think having them back will make his life easier.
Calvin Johnson (thumb), Bryant Johnson (ATV crash) and Dennis Northcutt (hand), as well as rookie tight end Brandon Pettigrew (thigh) all missed last Saturday’s 27-10 loss at Cleveland. All four returned to the practice field this week.
“It’s going to be great to have them back – you always want to have all of your weapons,” Stafford said. “But that’s not an excuse for anything that happened against Cleveland. You need to be able to execute no matter who is on the field.”
Lions coach Jim Schwartz said he’s hopeful all four will play Saturday against the Colts.
“That’s a huge part of our offense,” Schwartz said. “Everyone knows what Calvin brings us, and we brought in Bryant Johnson and Dennis Northcutt to give us more options in the passing game, and then we drafted Brandon in the first round.”
ford and Daunte Culpepper, Schwartz knows they will help the running game.
“There’s only so much you can do against the run when you have to account for Calvin Johnson on one side of the field and Bryant Johnson on the other side,” he said. “It works hand-in-hand. If the run game is going to get going, it will be because teams have to respect our receivers. The way we’re going to get our receivers open is to get the running game going.”
Bryant Johnson, who signed as a free agent after playing last season with the 49ers, is excited about playing with Calvin Johnson, who caught 78 passes for 1,331 yards and 12 touchdowns in last year’s 0-16 season.
“Calvin is a phenomenal athlete, and he’s driven to get better,” Bryant Johnson said. “This team has a lot of offensive weapons, and it feels great to be out there with them.”
Calvin Johnson had been held out of practice with a sprained thumb – an injury that Schwartz said he would have played through in the regular season – and is happy to be healthy again.
“I’m doing everything, and it feels great,” he said.
That doesn’t mean everything is just right, though. At one point in Tuesday’s morning practice, offensive coordinator Scott Linehan gathered his charges in a huddle for a brief but pointed discussion.
“Sometimes practice starts to lull a bit and you have to get the players’ attention and let them know this isn’t acceptable,” Schwartz said. “Scott was embarrassed about their performance, and he brought them up and gave them an earful. I thought they responded pretty well.”
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