When the Lions' punt receiver specialist Kalif Raymond left Sunday's win at Indianapolis with a foot injury, the next man to line up punts was All-Pro wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. For a team already plagued by injuries, seeing such a crucial part of the offense play in that role was a major concern.
This concern turned out to be justified in the face of St. Brown appeared to have suffered a minor knee injury on a punt returnwhich resulted in him not being able to attend training on Monday.
In his weekly radio spot on 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit, Lions head coach Dan Campbell indicated that St. Brown was the best option at this point. However, Campbell admitted that the Lions will have a different punt returner for Thursday's NFC North matchup against the Chicago Bears at Ford Field.
“Now that another week has passed, we will probably have another returnee,” Campbell told the hosts. “And if we need Saint (St. Brown) in a critical situation, we will use him. But that was really the reason he was there because he has a sure instinct and we know he will get the job done.”
Detroit has some interesting options to replace Raymond, who could miss some time with the foot injury. Cornerback Khalil Dorsey has return experience in both college and the NFL, although primarily with running back kicks rather than punts. Rookie RB Sione Vaki and veteran RB Craig Reynolds also got plenty of reps as punt returners in training camp.
