ALLEN PARK -- D’Andre Swift remains at least a week away, while kicker Austin Seibert and receiver Quintez Cephus are likely done for the year per Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell.
Swift suffered a shoulder injury in the team’s loss on Thanksgiving, the same one he hurt a couple of weeks prior in Pittsburgh. ESPN previously reported he was likely to miss multiple games due to pain in his AC joint. The second-year running back has been the team’s focal point on offense, hitting new highs on the ground in the two games leading into his injury while remaining one of the most productive receivers at his position.
“Right now, I feel like he may be a week away,” Campbell said. “I’m hoping that, as a matter of fact. He’s still pretty sore, but he’s getting better. He’s improving. But we’ll see, we’ll see where it goes here. I’ll know a lot more tomorrow. You just see how he feels day in and day out. But as of right now, he’s pretty tender.”
Campbell added that he doesn’t expect the team to shut Swift down for the season.
Swift ran for 130-plus yards in consecutive games leading into Thanksgiving, setting a new career-best on the ground in both of those instances. He has 555 rushing yards and four touchdowns, with 429 receiving yards and two scores on the year.
His departure means the Lions will lean on Jamaal Williams and a combination of Godwin Igwebuike and Jermar Jefferson out of the backfield. Williams ran 15 times for 65 yards against the Bears last week, with Igwebuike and Jefferson making the most of their limited touches to this point. While Williams has handled short-yardage work, regularly starting, Swift’s production in the passing game is hard to replace.
“It’s not easy to replace a guy like him, as dynamic as he’s been,” Campbell said of replacing Swift. “It really becomes that production is by committee now. Where does Swift’s production go now to get it back? And I would say we’re trying to find ways to spread it throughout this roster of skill players that we do have. Jamaal’s going to take a lot of that, so are the other two backs -- Jefferson and Godwin. Then some of the other just pass production is going to have to come from our receivers and tight ends.”
Seibert won’t return this year due to a hip injury per Campbell. The Lions have turned to Riley Patterson and Aldrick Rosas in recent weeks, continuing the rotating wheel at kicker. Cephus has been out with a broken collarbone since Week 5, with Campbell saying: “I think it’ll be highly unlikely” regarding a return in 2021. The second-year wideout had 15 catches for 204 yards and two touchdowns to that point.
“Both of those players, we feel very good about in 2022, being held up and ready to go,” Campbell said.
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