Das Team » ootaround: How many of them had ever be

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Theo Riddick proved he could be an effective, pass-catching running back last season.Riddick caught 80 receptions for the Detroit Lions in 2015, his third year in the league.Until Ameer Abdullah was hurt last week, though, Riddick hadnt carried the ball more than seven times in a game.That is about to change.The Lions, without Abdullah for at least eight weeks, are giving Riddick a chance to be an every-down running back in the NFL.I think youve seen hes more than capable, coach Jim Caldwell said.The Lions put running back Abdullah on the reserve-injured list with a foot injury Wednesday, pushing Riddick up the depth chart.Abdullah hurt his left foot on a 24-yard run in the second quarter of a loss Sunday to Tennessee and didnt return. The 2015 second-round pick ran for 101 yards on 18 carries and had five receptions for 57 yards and a touchdown for the Lions (1-1) this season.Riddick will likely replace Abdullah in the starting lineup Sunday at Green Bay (1-1) and will be backed up by rookie Dwayne Washington.He definitely fits the way they like to play, Packers coach Mike McCarthy said, with this scheme and the ability to spread the ball around and create favorable looks for the running back position, Theo does a great job of taking advantage of that.The 5-foot-9, 201-pound Riddick had a career-high 11 carries for 37 yards against the Titans and caught four passes for 28 yards. In the season-opening win at Indianapolis, he matched a career high with seven rushing attempts and had 108 yards of offense and two scores.Every time we hand him the ball, he seems like hes picking up positive yards, quarterback Matthew Stafford said. Hes doing it in the passing game like he always has, but doing a really nice job in the run game.Washington is a 6-1, 223-pound powerful runner, giving Detroit a complement to Riddicks ability to juke defenders and run past them. Washington, a seventh-round pick from Washington, has carried the ball six times for 32 yards and a score. He earned a spot Stevan Ridley was expected to have this season.Zach Zenner, who was inactive for the first two games, gives the Lions another option out of the backfield. The former South Dakota State star made Detroits team as an undrafted free agent and started in one game and played in five more, getting 17 carries for 60 yards before broken ribs and a partially collapsed lung ended his season. Zenner insisted playing in the preseason this year prepared him to play at Green Bay in what would be his first NFL game since Oct. 18, 2015.Somebody has to take a few more carries than they would have ordinarily, Caldwell said. And, obviously I think we have a number of guys that can do that for us.The Lions signed wide receiver Aaron Dobson to take Abdullahs roster spot. The New England Patriots, with current Detroit general manager Bob Quinn, drafted Dobson in the second round three years ago. He had 53 catches for 698 yards and four touchdowns from 2013 to 2015 with the Patriots.Game notes The Lions practiced without defensive end Ezekiel Ansah and linebacker DeAndre Levy, two of their best players on defense. Ansah played very little Sunday against Tennessee before leaving the game with an injured left ankle. Levy was inactive against the Titans because of a quadriceps injury. ... Detroit added depth at running back by signing George Winn to its practice squad along with linebacker Zaviar Gooden. The Lions released receiver Isaac Fruechte and guard Chase Farris from the practice squad.---Online: AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Larry Lage at www.twitter.com/larrylage and follow his work at www.bigstory.ap.org/content/larry-lage NFL Wholesale Jerseys . President of baseball operations Larry Beinfest was fired Friday after 12 years with the Marlins. The move came as the team neared the end of its third consecutive last-place season in the NL East. China Jerseys . Colin Wilson had two goals and an assist, and Mike Fisher scored a goal and helped set up two others in the Predators 6-4 victory over the Red Wings on Monday night. http://www.cheapnfljerseyschinafreeshipping.com/ . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Cheap Jerseys From China . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Our experts weigh in on four of the biggest questions in NASCAR as the Sprint Cup Series braces for Chase race No. 7 Sunday at Martinsville Speedway:Turn 1: NASCAR put new rules in for Sprint Cup veterans running in Xfinity and Trucks. No more than 10 Xfinity races and seven Truck events a season, and none during the Chase in each series. Whats your take?Ricky Craven, ESPN NASCAR analyst:?it was time for a formula like this to be created. Its an opportunity to expand the field of young drivers in the Xfinity series, and we need young talent to be identified. There is a long list of stars retiring in the next five years, and those seats need to be filled with talent.Ryan McGee, ESPN.com: Im all for it. Ive been for it for years. I totally understand the rock and the hard place that Xfinity and Truck owners are between. Sponsors are incredibly difficult to come by in those series and those sponsors want established names behind the wheel. This allows for just enough of that but also allows those owners to bring along young racers. Plus, the Cup guys winning races within those series Chase formats unquestionably waters down the postseason. Fans have been telling me they wanted something like this for years, like all the way back to the Mark Martin-stinking-up-the-Busch-Series show days. Now they have it.John Oreovicz, ESPN.com: Fan unrest has been building up for quite some time, so this came as no surprise. It took only a couple of races this playoff season for NASCAR to realize that Cup drivers were not only sometimes devaluing the Xfinity and Truck Chases, they also had the potential to actually affect the championships, whether through a wreck or team orders. I think its a good move to keep Cup veterans out of the lower series Chases.Bob Pockrass, ESPN.com: Wait and see. The Kyle Busch rule -- this year it would have impacted only Kyle Busch, Brad Keselowski and Joey Logano -- will help quiet fans angry over Cup drivers taking Xfinity/Truck glory and potentially impacting their championships. But Im not convinced it helps developmental drivers because it encourages sponsors who want Cup drivers to spend less money, and that could impact opportunities down the road.Turn 2: NASCAR had hoped to announce an entitlement sponsor by the end of October. Its the end of October and no announcement. Concerned?Craven:?I am not concerned, and I truly dont understand why an announcement will be made in the middle of our playoffs. Ive been told an announcement is coming and