Allen Park — In an ideal world, an NFL team wouldn’t have to rely heavily on rookies. But the injury rate associated with football doesn’t leave much room for ideal scenarios.
During his three years with the Detroit Lions, coach Jim Caldwell has had to lean a little heavier on his rookie class each season, particularly during the early portion of the campaigns.
In 2013, the Lions were able to show patience with early round picks Eric Ebron, Kyle Van Noy and Travis Swanson because of veteran depth. Last year, guard Laken Tomlison was called upon to start early, but running back Ameer Abdullah, fullback Michael Burton and cornerback Quandre Diggs were eased into their roles.