Johnson's retirement forces Stafford to alter film study habits
It's likely Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford will have to make several significant changes to his game due to the loss of superstar wideout Calvin Johnson to retirement this offseason.
One of those adjustments will apparently be reading defenses that no longer gravitate to wherever Johnson was on the field.
Because of this type of treatment Johnson received, Stafford admitted he limited his film study to only other teams that also had a receiver of Johnson's caliber.
"There were only a handful of teams I would really watch tape on last year," Stafford told WJR earlier this month, according to Tim Twentyman of the Lions' official site. "It was the (Atlanta) Falcons with Julio Jones or the (Dallas) Cowboys with Dez Bryant. I wanted to watch defenses and see how they played against premier, top-flight receivers because we obviously had one.
"Teams were scared of Calvin or those type guys, so they make adjustments that you really don't see in games when they play guys and teams that don't have that guy."
Without Johnson, the Lions' passing attack will likely focus on spreading the ball around to receivers Golden Tate and Marvin Jones, running back Theo Riddick, and tight end Eric Ebron, meaning Stafford will change to a more traditional approach when it comes to studying film.
"It will definitely be different," Stafford said. "With him being gone now, I'm sure the looks will be a little more standard."
How Stafford will react to his first time in the NFL without Johnson is arguably the biggest question mark for Detroit entering the season, but head coach Jim Caldwell said the quarterback might benefit from the simpler looks defenses will give him without Johnson.
"There were some coverages that you almost can't recognize," Caldwell said. "They're not your standard looks that you get and oftentimes we couldn't necessarily make a determination on exactly which one we were going to get of those creative coverages.
"(Stafford) had to deal with some crazy situations. Now, he's probably going to see a little more balanced look until one of those other guys get really hot and then you might see some stuff."