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Bleacher Report thinks Hockenson won’t live up tot he hype for weird reasons." Detroit Lions NotesNotes: B/R doesn’t believe T.J. Hockenson will live up to the hypeNew Kerryon Johnson Jersey ,62commentsBleacher Report thinks Hockenson won’t live up tot he hype for weird reasons.EDTEvery year we speculate whether or not a first/round draft pick will show out in his first year in the league. There’s always some sort of hype attached, especially if it’s a player taken in the top 10. T.J. Hockenson is no different. There’s already an expectation that Hockenson will become a great tight end in the NFL for years to come. It’s been something that’s been pretty unanimous... until today. Bleacher Report wrote up their picks for NFL Players Who Won’t Live Up To The Hype In 2019 and Hockenson made the list. Their reason is that no tight end has ever won the rookie of the year award. They go on to mention how most rookie tight ends struggle to transition to the pro game, and, therefore, Hockenson is doomed to have a bad year. Both their reasons are true, but it seems strange to include him on the list. While some Lions fans and pundits think Hockenson was the right pick and will more than likely be a great tight end, I don’t think there are many out there that expect a huge season from the eighth pick. So I wonder where they’re hearing the hype. Speaking of Bleacher Report. They put out another list on Wednesday that asks which player is on the hot seat for every team. It should come as no surprise that they went with former second-round pick Teez Tabor. Here’s some of what they had to say. “The 23-year-old cornerback will likely battle Rashaan Melvin and Amani Oruwariye for a perimeter spot. If he doesn’t lock down a starting job for the upcoming season, he may lose a spot in the rotation and—even worse—a place on the roster.”Tabor is going into a very important third year in the league and has been the subject of much scrutiny for himself and Bob Quinn, who has otherwise had a pretty good draft record. Can Teez figure it out? The early news out of minicamp is that he’s been performing quite well. But then there’s this.Former Lion Kyle Van Noy has had a pretty good career since leaving Detroit. He went on to the New England Patriots and won two Super Bowl and played in another. He’s come a long way from being a player that most Lions fans believed was a complete bust. There’s no secret that Van Noy struggled with the Lions. He just couldn’t seem to find a place on the team, and his play just didn’t gel with what Teryl Austin was trying to do. Van Noy admits that really got to him.“There are a lot of times when you go to a situation where you’re labeled a bust or things weren’t working out Frank Ragnow Jersey , just wasn’t clicking, you start to question your athletic ability and just life in general. Am I doing everything right?” recalled Van Noy. “I think to stay positive and keep your family and your friends close that are always encouraging you, and just try to grind through it... that’s what I tried to do.”Ultimately he says this is what helped him become a better player. Our friends over at Pats Pulpit have a great story on him: ESPN reporter Michael Rothstein has a great article out today detailing Lions receiver Tom Kennedy’s quest to become an NFL player after spending most of his time at college playing lacrosse. It’s a crazy story that features all kinds of twists and turns that wind up with Kennedy finding his way onto the Lions roster. Give it a read. Former Lions running back Kevin Smith has made the turn from former NFL running back to running backs coach. Now the running backs coach for Florida Atlantic, Smith talked with Dave Birkett this week about life after football and how he’s helping FAU become a running school that’s sent three running backs to the NFL since taking the job, including Bills third-round pick Devin Singletary. The CFL begins their season this week. Our own Canadian correspondent John Whiticar is sure to be pretty excited about it. As will Lions rookie Jahlani Tavai and teammate Leo Koloamatangi. Both have brothers in the league. Kolamatangi’s brother, Meffy, plays on the defensive line for BC Lions while Tavai’s brother, J.R., plays on the defensive line for the Ottawa Redblacks. PFF details which quarterbacks target positions most and least often." Detroit Lions NotesNotes: Matthew Stafford sure loves throwing to running backsNew,62commentsPFF details which quarterbacks target positions most and least often.EDTShare this storyShare this on FacebookShare this on TwitterShareAll sharing optionsShareAll sharing options for:Notes: Matthew Stafford sure loves throwing to running backsTwitterFacebookRedditPocketFlipboardEmailPhoto by Dylan Buell/Getty ImagesWhile we know a whole bucket of factors play into who a quarterback targets Marvin Jones Jersey , it’s still interesting to see the data on where they tend to throw the ball.Pro Football Focus’ Scott Barrett took a look at which quarterbacks target specific positions most frequently using data from the past decade (2009-2018) and likely starters with at least 800 career pass attempts. That came out to 22 qualifying quarterbacks. He notes that the findings are heavily skewed by roster talent the quarterback has to work with, of course.For each position, Barrett listed the top five and the bottom five quarterbacks who have targeted that position most often. Matthew Stafford ranks fourth among active quarterbacks that targeted running backs at 22.6 percent. That’s likely due to fantasy gem Theo Riddick, but it could also mean something for Kerryon Johnson. Drew Brees tops the list at 27.1 percent and Aaron Rodgers ranks last at 15.3 percent. The Lions quarterback ranks somewhere in the middle in percentage of throws targeting tight ends (as mentioned, Barrett only listed top five and bottom five). That may change in the future with all the new tight end tools, such as T.J. Hockenson and Jesse James, says our leader Jeremy Reisman. The top quarterback on the list is Carson Wentz at 32.4 percent and the bottom is Ryan Fitzpatrick at 10.6 percent. Stafford also ranks somewhere in the middle in targeting outside wide receivers, the top being Ben Roethlisberger at 45.3 percent and the bottom being Wentz at 31.1 percent. He ranks among the bottom five quarterbacks who target slot wide receivers—eighteenth at 18.9 percent. With all the offseason additions, it’ll be interesting to see how or whether Stafford’s rankings change.Bleacher Report’s Chris Roling listed his predictions for training camp standouts, including Lions newcomer Danny Amendola. Calling him reliable and citing him as a favorite of Tom Brady Darius Slay Jersey , Rolling says Amendola will be the man Stafford relies on most—ahead of Hockenson. Hmmmmm.Nothing more satisfying than the sound of a good, solid SACK, especially on an NFC North rival. The Detroit Free Press’ Dave Birkett ranked the Lions’ top 2019 sack producers and predicted how many each player will get.Madden NFL 20 ratings were revealed and while most Lions didn’t fare too well, Damon “Snacks” Harrison was pretty pleased with his rating. Ryan Mathews has the full story here.Here are players trying to guess each other’s Madden ratings.Happy previews and predictions SZN. Tim Twentyman’s looking at the defensive line today, calling it the Lions’ most talented position group heading into training camp—assuming Snacks shows up.And Justin Rogers of The Detroit News highlights five roster battles to watch.Forget pin the tail on the donkey, everyone’s playing pin the bear and No. 2 pencil on Coach Patricia these days.