Calvin Johnson Retires: A Blessing In Disguise For Detroit
By Jeff Olson
For nearly a decade Calvin Johnson has been one of the greatest wide receivers anyone has ever had the delight of watching. Sadly, Tuesday morning the Lions star wide receiver officially decided to walk away from the game at just 30 years old. This decision comes after months of deliberating his NFL future. Now the Lions must start planning for life without the man they call Megatron. While Johnson’s presence in the lineup will obviously be missed, Detroit will now save $11.1 million in cap space this year. I would even go as far to call this retirement a blessing in disguise for the Lions.
Even without Johnson, the Lions still have plenty of weapons offensively. Golden Tate is still under contract with the team for three years after racking up over 2,100 yards in his first two years in the Motor City. Theo Riddick emerged last year as a great pass catching threat out of the backfield, ranking second in the NFL in receiving yards by a running back. Eric Ebron made strides last year after struggling as a rookie. He has shown the athleticism and playmaking ability to emerge as a consistent threat if he continues to progress in his third year in the league.
Even with all these weapons the Lions will need to add a WR, although not a top notch guy. Adding a number two receiver is very doable in free agency and can also be addressed in the middle rounds of the draft. Guys like Jermain Kearse and Anquan Boldin are affordable guys with Super Bowl experience and trustworthy hands who the Lions could look to bring. They will also likely look to add a receiver in the middle rounds of the draft. Look for guys like De’runnya Wilson, Keyarris Garrett, or Mike Thomas to be targeted on the third day of the draft as guys with good size and hands who can develop into that second option that the Lions could have on cheap rookie deal.
Johnson’s retirement changes nothing about what the Lions biggest needs are, help on the offensive and defensive lines. Detroit is in desperate need of a left tackle, which should be their highest priority this offseason. They are also still trying to recreate their defensive tackle position after losing Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley in last year’s free agency. The Lions need to add one, if not two, guys to this position. There is also a need at defensive end and linebacker with Jason Jones hitting free agency and Stephen Tulloch being cut last month. Detroit would be wise to use their additional cap space and higher round draft picks on addressing these needs first.
Today is a bitter sweet day as Lions fans say goodbye to an icon. For years Johnson was the very best wide receiver in the game and was the heartbeat of Detroit’s offense. While I, along with many others, will certainly miss watching him play each week, Lions fans should not be too sad about this departure. The organization now has additional cap space to address bigger needs and can still bring in a quality replacement for the aging super star.