Detroit Lions Snap Counts

With Theo Riddick out again, we saw Zach Zenner play 97% of the snaps. I would envision this continues heading into the playoffs. This was a game that mattered, so the Lions played their usual starters. Detroit will head into Seattle next week, likely missing just Riddick.

With Theo Riddick out again, Zach Zenner scored over 20 fantasy points, and played 76% of the team snaps. With much to play for, we saw the usual names out there against Dallas. Golden Tate and Eric Ebron led wideouts and tight ends in snaps, and Marvin Jones saw a healthy dose of snaps as well.

Theo Riddick was out yet again this week, and Dwayne Washington did the filling in. He played 71% of the team snaps. Detroit was down in this one, and struggled to find any rhythm in the passing game. Marvin Jones, Anquan Boldin, and Golden Tate all played over 80% of the team snaps this week.

Matthew Stafford banged up his throwing hand, but managed to stay in and play 100% of the snaps. This should be the case moving forward, but he is not 100%. Theo Riddick didn't play this past week, leaving a majority of the snaps to be picked up by Dwayne Washington. Zach Zenner had just 38%.

Detroit went into New Orleans and shocked the Saints, especially on the defensive side. Marvin Jones sat out, which resulted in Andre Roberts seeing 76% of the team snaps. It was still Golden Tate and Anquan Boldin to see a majority of the targets. Theo Riddick played just 47% of the team snaps.

Theo Riddick is the lead back in Detroit, playing 79% of the snaps, it is not just passing down roles anymore. Eric Ebron played 80% of the team snaps, yet was only targeted on 2% of them. Anquan Boldin continues to be a solid threat for Detroit as their WR3. In a pass heavy offense, these names will continue to produce.

Detroit won this game in a very non-Detroit way. They had a pick-six, and a punt return for a touchdown. Theo Riddick led the running backs in snaps, which is no surprise again. We did see Dwayne Washington just behind him, however. Marvin Jones led the team in snaps among wideouts.

Bye Week

Theo Riddick continues to be a solid back, and played 70% of the snaps. Eric Ebron put up another solid game, and played 79% of the snaps. The passing attack continues to put out snaps for almost every receiver. We saw Andre Roberts get 20% of the snaps, behind the usual three.

Theo Riddick came back this week, and played 85% of the snaps. With a lack of run game in Detroit, every other back goes back to having little to no value. Eric Ebron played 80% of the snaps, which is huge given his injury history.

Zach Zenner played 32 snaps to Justin Forsett's 16. There is still little to no run game coming out of Detroit right now. Marvin Jones, Anquan Boldin, and Golden Tate continue to get the large amount of snaps, and all are in use with this high volume passing attack. No tight end has emerged since Eric Ebron went down.

Theo Riddick was out this week, which led to Zach Zenner playing 77% of the snaps. Justin Forsett played just 12 snaps. Once Riddick comes back, and also when Forsett becomes more comfortable we can revisit. Anquan Boldin is opening up to some more snaps with a lot of pass catching targets out this week. Boldin will be the tight end type play.

The Detroit running game continues to be lackluster. We saw Theo Riddick play 66% of the snaps this week, and that led to two touchdowns in the passing game. Marvin Jones and Anquan Boldin both played 87% of the snaps. There will be a lot of three-wide receiver sets with no Eric Ebron.

The biggest takeaway from this week is that golden Tate played just 57% of the snaps. This pushed Anquan Boldin up to 86% of the team snaps. This is certainly a concern for those with shares of Tate. Theo Riddick continued to dominate snaps, even with the talks of Washington getting some carries.

Marvin Jones sure is making a name for himself in Detroit. He played 96% of the snaps, which is expected for the league's leading receiver. Anquan Boldin saw a bump this week, playing 78% of the snaps. Dwayne Washington might be bringing a closure on the snaps for him and Theo Riddick, keep an eye on that battle.

Another running back injury, and this time it was Ameer Abdullah. Theo Riddick saw 65% of the snaps, while Dwayne Washington saw 14%. Washington should cut into Riddick's running role, but given this team being pass happy — Riddick is still the guy to own. Anquan Boldin took a step up this week, playing 85% snaps.

Detroit's offense was a huge fantasy monster, and they don't make it unknown for who is one the field. Marvin Jones played 94% of the snaps, and surprisingly Eric Ebron was right behind him at 92%. Theo Riddick and Ameer Abdullah both performed well, but Abdullah did register for 62% of the snaps, compared to Riddick's 37%. Both were very efficient.

Quarterback Snap Counts

Running Back Snap Counts

Wide Receivers & Tight End Snap Counts

Detroit Lions Snap Count Breakdown

Matthew Stafford was once again healthy in 2015, and it showed in the amount of snaps he played. He was in for 96 percent of the snaps, and while his last few years has been all over the place, there's no doubt he's the quarterback of the present and future for the Lions

Ameer Abdullah showed plenty of signs in his rookie season, both on offense and on special teams. As with most rookies though, he suffered through some injuries and fumbling issues. Abdullah ended the season with 33 percent of the running back snaps. He was outdone by Theo Riddick and his 44 percent of the snaps, which were primarily out wide or on passing downs. Joique Bell's final season with the Lions was in 2015 and he took up the final 22 percent of the snaps in the group. With him gone it's likely that those get split between Riddick and Abdullah, along with promising youngsters Zach Zenner and Dwayne Washington.

It was shocking to most, but Calvin Johnson and his 93 percent of the snaps are retired and gone for the 2016 season. He will absolutely be missed, and it's unlikely the Lions have anyone to fully take over the role he was in. They did sign former Bengal Marvin Jones this offseason and he would appear to be the main contributor to try to chip away at that role beyond already established players on the roster. Golden Tate was Johnson's partner in crime in 2015, he was on the field for 86 percent of the snaps in his own right. Tate should continue on that pace in terms of snaps in his slot receiving role, and will likely be on the field even in one wide receiver sets in 2016.

Eric Ebron saw the majority of snaps at the tight end position in 2015. Brandon Pettigrew was the only other tight end to see above 25 percent of the snaps. Ebron is entering his third season and should be primed and ready to take on a semi-prominent role in the offense. With Johnson gone, the former first round pick out of North Carolina will likely be asked to become a main contributor offensively on a week-to-week basis. Barring injury, his snaps should increase substantially.