Detroit Lions Working to Involve Donovan Peoples-Jones in Offense

The Detroit Lions elected to add to their offense at the NFL trade deadline, making a move for wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones.

The wideout had seen his production and playing time drop off with the Cleveland Browns, so the move to Detroit allowed for a fresh start. It was also a welcome move for Peoples-Jones, as he returned to his home town of Detroit.

Now, the challenge has been for Peoples-Jones to integrate within the Lions' offense. The newcomer has yet to make his first catch with Detroit, and has only had two targets in three games with the team.

The Lions have been getting better production in their receiver room in recent weeks, headlined by Jameson Williams' emergence. Because of this, the Lions are still looking to work Peoples-Jones into the fold.

"Yeah, I think that, man we always felt like he was part of the room. He’s part of what we have in there. We’ve got a lot of confidence in (Amon-Ra St. Brown) Saint and Josh Reynolds. (Jameson Williams) Jamo’s coming on," Campbell explained Monday. "(Kalif Raymond) Leaf, we know is kind of our specialist, does a little bit of a lot of different jobs for us, and so we just feel like he’s very much part of the crew and we wanted to make sure he got used to what we’re doing, he felt comfortable in our scheme and terminology.

"Every week, we’re trying to get him just a little bit more, so we certainly feel like he’s part of this receiving group and we always want to try to get him a little bit more involved, if you will. But no, we don’t – it’s not like we see this guy immediately coming in, he’s going to play 60 plays or something. We feel good about the receiver room and he’s part of it.”

Peoples-Jones has impressed his coaching staff and teammates alike since coming to Motown. He quickly grasped the playbook and his physicality can help the team in a number of ways.

"He's come along. What I've seen out of him, which is really encouraging, out of anything that he could do right now, he has gotten this game plan," said Antwaan Randle El on a recent SB Nation charity video stream. "Our offense, the things that we've taught him, he's gotten it and understood it. That is a big deal, coming mid season from one team to the next and to drop the old stuff, forget the old stuff and, 'Hey, I've got to retain this new stuff and not let it cloud what I've learned in the past.' That goes a long way."

Randle El also credited Peoples-Jones for his adaptability. He had dealt with numerous coaching changes in Cleveland, so the receiver was able to handle the Lions' game plans quite quickly since being acquired.

Now, the challenge remains finding a way to get him involved to benefit the offense.

"To be within that and then come here and just pick it up and kind of know it, I was really surprised. This dude, he has it down. So that aspect is the biggest thing, but then him getting on the field and being able to actually execute it," Randle El explained. "You see some of what happens with him, he's a big body guy. He can body up on his slants and short ends and things of that nature, and then even getting the ball down the field. ... It's just a matter of time, really getting him in. We're getting him in more and more, trying to get him some snaps, we're just loaded right now, which is a good thing offensively, with the weapons that we have."