Ben Johnson: D'Andre Swift Is 'an Explosive Playmaker'
Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions' offense seem to be moving in the right direction, headed into the start of the 2022 regular season.
Just a year ago, the Lions didn't strike much fear in opponents from an offensive standpoint, producing just 19.1 points per game (25th out of 32 NFL franchises). But, things have changed since then.
Anthony Lynn is out as offensive coordinator, the team beefed up its receivers room over the offseason (via the acquisitions of veteran DJ Chark and rookie Jameson Williams) and there's a new man in charge of the offense: former Detroit tight ends coach Ben Johnson.
And, almost instantly, there's been a renewed sense of confidence in the unit, and Johnson has a lot to do with it.
Johnson served as the Lions' de facto passing game coordinator from Week 10 on a season ago, coinciding with Detroit head coach Dan Campbell taking over the offensive play-calling duties. And once the transition from Lynn to Campbell and Johnson occurred, the offense experienced an uptick in production.
Specifically, the play of Goff significantly improved.
With Lynn leading the unit, Goff threw for just eight touchdowns, averaged only 6.1 yards per pass attempt and tossed six interceptions. It was good for a QB rating of 85.3.
Meanwhile, in five healthy games for the experienced signal-caller with Campbell and Johnson calling the shots, Goff produced 11 touchdown passes, averaged 7.1 yards per pass attempt and threw just two interceptions. It equated to a passer rating of 107.1, which was third best among all passers during that stretch. Detroit also went 3-2 in those games.
Johnson has continued to develop chemistry with Goff and the offense since. In fact, he and the former L.A. Rams passer spent a significant amount of time evaluating and breaking down film of the quarterback this offseason. This included not only film from Goff's debut campaign in Detroit, but also game footage from his tenure in Los Angeles (2016-2020).
Johnson's rapport with Goff should ease him into his role as a play-caller, something that Johnson has felt comfortable with this exhibition season.
"I think it’s been a balance of still trying to evaluate our guys, put them in good spots, so that we can get a feel for them with the lights on them," Johnson told reporters Friday, in reference to how play-calling has gone for him during training camp. "But, from my perspective, there are a couple calls I think over the course of both games that, ‘Hey, I wish I would’ve done this a little bit different.’ I think that’s part of my own process. But, you talk to play-callers around the league, I think a lot of them kind of say you’ll always have one or two each game, kind of like that. So, that’s part of it. But, for me I felt comfortable. I feel like I’m getting the plays in quick to the quarterbacks, they’ve done a nice job getting it to the offense. And, I think we’ve played with some of that tempo that we’ve talked about, just in terms of breaking the huddle and being able to go up and execute. So, been pleased about that."
While Johnson has focused a ton of his attention on Goff throughout camp, he's also had his eyes fixed on third-year running back D'Andre Swift.
Lon Horwedel, USA TODAY Sports
Swift has set the lofty goal for himself of producing 1,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving this season. If he were to achieve the feat, he'd be just the fourth back in NFL history to do so.
The Georgia product is certainly known around Lions camp as a special talent, and you can add Johnson to the list of individuals that believes he can positively impact Detroit's offense in a variety of ways.
"For us, I mean, he’s an explosive playmaker, so each week it’s, ‘How can we get him the ball? How many different ways can we get him the ball?’ So, we’ll always explore that, and then there’ll be times too we’ll use him as a little bit of eye candy and get the other guys the ball," Johnson said. "But, I mean, he’s going to open up the rest of the weapons on this offense, because we know anytime he gets the ball in his hands, he can make a good play great and score touchdowns. So, I think our offensive line responds to that, I think our skill players respond to that. They know they have to finish every single play, because they don’t want to be that guy that, ‘Hey, the play went longer than it normally does with Swifty, but my guy ended up making the tackle.’ So, I think they know when he gets his hands on the ball (that) it could be special.”
