The Detroit Lions Have a (Rapidly) Rising Star in D’Andre Swift

The rookie running back looks like one of the best young talents in the NFL — both at his position, and overall.

For a franchise that once enjoyed the services of the immortal Barry Sanders (the best running back in NFL history in my personal opinion), history has not been kind to the running back position of the Detroit Lions — and that’s putting it very nicely — since Sanders shockingly retired after the 1998 season.

I’ll spare you the case studies of guys like Mikel LeShoure, Joique Bell, Kevin Smith, and Shawn Bryson finishing as the team’s leading rusher at different points this decade (three of those guys finished as the Lions’ most productive rusher in a given season despite failing to exceed 860 yards rushing), and simply leave you with this: since 2004, Detroit has had ONE running back exceed 1,000 yards rushing — back in 2013, in the first of Reggie Bush’s two-season layover in the Motor City.

At least per their current paces through nine games this season, it appears that the Lions won’t have a single running back eclipse the thousand-yard mark in 2020, either. In fact, the Lions don’t have a single running back ranked among the top 31 players in the NFL in rushing, and three quarterbacks have run for…