How Soon Could D'Andre Swift Crack 1,000 Rushing Yards in a Season?
The excitement is already building for what Georgia product D'Andre Swift will do during his rookie campaign in Motown.
Swift -- Detroit's second-round pick in the 2020 draft -- presently possesses the second-best odds to win the NFL's offensive rookie of the year award, per BetMGM.
At the very least, he's expected to form an electric one-two punch with incumbent No. 1 back Kerryon Johnson as early as this upcoming season.
Many Lions fans won't be satisfied with simply the formation of a nice backfield duo, however.
They, instead, want to see Swift record an 1,000-yard season on the ground and immediately -- which if accomplished, would mark the first time a Lions back has accomplished the feat since Reggie Bush did so in 2013.
It's a tall task to ask of Swift in his rookie season, though.
The biggest reason why: Detroit offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell is likely going to deploy a running back-by-committee approach in 2020, which will feature not only Johnson and Swift but also Bo Scarbrough.
It will ultimately hinder the amount of carries and yards that Swift will be able to accumulate on a week-to-week basis.
Marcus Mosher of Bleacher Report shares the sentiment.
"Swift enters a backfield with Kerryon Johnson, Bo Scarbrough and Ty Johnson, which could limit his touches," Mosher said. "Don't be surprised if the Lions use a running-back-by-committee approach, with Kerryon Johnson doing most of the inside running and Swift being used more on the edges and in the passing game."
Sure, he might emerge as Detroit's lead back as the season progresses, especially if Johnson were to, unfortunately, go down with a midseason injury for a third consecutive year.
However, Swift will likely fail to garner enough rushing attempts to produce 1,000 yards on the ground by season's end.
So, you can cross out 2020 as a season in which Swift will be able to reach the 1K mark.
I bet you're wondering now about what 2021 will bring for Swift.
While it's far too early to predict how good of a back he will be by his second year in the league, he's still guaranteed to have one major obstacle in his way: the presence of Johnson.
Johnson doesn't become a free agent until the conclusion of the 2021 campaign, meaning that Swift will still have to fight for carries a season from now.
It likely will make it tough once again for him to reach the plateau.
Subsequently, the soonest I see Swift rushing for 1,000 yards in a season is in 2022.
By that point, it's feasible that Johnson will no longer be a member of the Lions' backfield, which would make Swift a true bell-cow back for the first time in his career.
Once that is the case, all bets are off for what he can accomplish in Honolulu Blue -- including amassing a four-digit year in rushing yards.
Related
SI Lions Roundtable: Will Jarrad Davis Be on Roster in 2021?
