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If Matthew Stafford is to have a breakout season, he'll need to stay healthy for a change. An injury to left tackle Jeff Backus, however, might reduce the chances of that happening.
According to this report, Backus has suffered a torn pectoral muscle, and it's unclear if he'll be ready for the start of training camp. A team source calls the injury "not serious," but I'm a little hesitant to take the Lions at their word when it comes to injuries.
This is a team, remember, that spent most of last season downplaying Stafford's injured shoulder, even though he appeared in only three games. If Backus' pectoral is actually torn, missing at least some of the preseason seems likely, and perhaps even longer than that.
We already placed the Lions near the bottom of our offensive line rankings. Right tackle Gosder Cherilus is coming off knee surgery, and even leaving aside these injury concerns, it's not one of the league's better lines.
Detroit has some intriguing skill-position players, and its defense has the chance to emerge as one of the league's better groups (certainly up front, after selecting Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley in the first round in the last two drafts).
But that offensive line could be a problem, especially if Backus misses any time.
--Andy Richardson
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