We are entering into a new era in Detroit. New head coach Dan Campbell, after an electric introductory press conference, is ready to lead the Lions into a new chapter of kneecap-knawing football. After shipping out the veteran Matthew Stafford for a massive haul including two first-round picks and Jared Goff, the Lions are full-steam ahead on their rebuild.
Far from a throw-in, the Lions had a strong interest in Goff, and are ready to hand the reigns to the talented 26-year-old. Though he will not have the genius of Sean McVay orchestrating their offense, Goff will have no shortage of weapons at his disposal in Detroit.
Contract Situations
Detroit is far from finished in what has already been a busy offseason, and still has some very tough decisions to make regarding some key contributors on offense.
The team’s top three pass-catchers (Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, and Danny Amendola) are all set to become free agents this offseason, and it is highly unlikely Detroit brings back two of the three. The expectation is that the team brings back Golladay, though his steep price take could create some problems in the negotiations. The only two main contributors of offense that are under contract for the near future are stud TE TJ Hockenson and RB D’Andre Swift, both of which are under team control until 2024. That opens up a ton of targets (Golladay/Jones/Amendola combined for 216 targets in 2020) and the main beneficiary could very well be Quintez Cephus.
Who is Quintez Cephus?
Coming into the 2020 NFL Draft, Cephus had declared after a wild tenure at Wisconsin (there’s a pretty interesting story about it you can watch here).
In his junior season, Quintez Cephus led the team with a very solid 59/901/7 line and was selected by Detroit in the fifth round (166th overall). After a condensed training camp and no preseason, Cephus saw 10 targets in Detroit’s opening week loss to Chicago. Though his rookie season ended with an underwhelming 20/349/2 line, Cephus (and his 14.5 yards per target) flashed enough playmaking potential to get Lions fans excited for the future.
Why Cephus Will Take a Leap in 2021
With Amendola, Jones and Golladay all likely gone this offseason (though it would be very surprising if Detroit let Golladay walk), Cephus could potentially be the only returning receiver on the Lions in 2021.
With a full offseason to adjust himself to the new system in place (as well as his chemistry with Goff), Cephus will take a major leap up the Lions’ depth chart and could play himself into some major opportunity.
While Swift and Hockenson (and Golladay if he returns) would all again be major contributors on offense, it could be Cephus who sees the greatest uptick in usage volume. He already has an NFL frame, and if Cephus can make noticeable improvement in his technicality in his route-running then he could turn into a legit field-stretching weapon for Goff and the new-look Lions.
Outlook
If Golladay does in fact return to Detroit, then Cephus would most likely inherit a greater percentage of the targets left by Jones/Amendola (while obviously Swift and Hockenson will remain involved in the passing game) and could easily see 50-70 targets in 2021.
If Golladay leaves, however, then Cephus’ target share would skyrocket and he could flirt with WR2/3 status immediately. If he and Goff end up having a strong chemistry, then Quintez Cephus could become the receiver to own in Detroit sooner than you might think.
