Why the Detroit Lions Shouldn’t Cut Andre Roberts After 2016

Controversy Surrounds Detroit Lions Kick Returner, Should He Be Kept?

Find me another #4 wide receiver in the NFL making a bigger difference on their respective team this season.

I’ll save you the time. You won’t find one. Andre Roberts has made an impact that far exceeds what Lions fans were expecting this season.

Contrary to what my writing partner Brandon Knapp believes (that the Lions should cut Roberts after this season), the wide receiver deserves the chance to earn a spot on this team next year, and let me tell you why.

The Case For Roberts:

Roberts has made his impact at times when the Lions needed a spark and most of all in the clutch. He kept them in the Chicago game with an 85 yard punt return when the offense was dead. He had an unbelievable 4th down catch in the end zone against LA, and a leaping fingertip catch against Washington to set up the game winner for Anquan Boldin. Roberts put Prater in the position to nail a game tying field goal against Minnesota with a sliding catch, and then jump-started another sputtering offense with a punt return touchdown against Jacksonville.

Brandon’s reasoning for cutting Roberts is that he’s ‘inconsistent’. I will agree in a sense. Yes it has been difficult to watch Roberts continually bring the ball out of the end-zone on kick returns, however I see this more as a coaching issue rather than a player issue. Roberts is looking to make plays, it’s for the coaches to tell him that he needs to take a knee when the ball is caught in the end zone. He also had a bad drop against Washington, but was immediately bailed out by Golden Tate who gained the lost yards on a screen pass. Roberts muffed the punt against Jacksonville, but it only turned into three points and he redeemed himself with the return touchdown.

Brandon also suggests that the Lions replace him with Cordarrelle Patterson, who might just be the most inconsistent player in the NFL, but I’ll stop here.

I, for one, am beyond thankful for Andre Roberts. For anyone who wants to complain about him being the #4 wide-out, here’s a list of some of the guys that have been employed by the Detroit Lions at receiver since 2012: