Lions' Theo Riddick: Transitioning to lead role
Riddick appears to have surpassed Ameer Abdullah as the Lions' No. 1 running back, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com reports.
Detroit's running game has been consistently ineffective all season and it seems the Lions are trying to shake things up to try and spark some success. Although head coach Jim Caldwell technically hasn't declared Riddick the starter, multiple sources indicated that Abdullah was healthy enough to play Sunday, yet he didn't. Instead, Riddick led the charge by taking a team-high 10 carries while logging 71 percent of the playing time, with rookie Tion Green coming in second with five carries and 19 percent of the playing time. Neither of the two were particularly efficient with their touches Sunday, but Riddick's big-play ability came in handy on several occasions, particularly on the 18-yard catch-and-run that jumpstarted Detroit's game-winning drive. While he's unlikely to receive a huge workload on the ground in any one game going forward, Riddick -- who checks in as Pro Football Focus' sixth-highest graded tailback from a pass-blocking standpoint -- possesses the trust of the Lions' coaching staff and carries the potential to make up for it for it as a receiver.