ALLEN PARK >> Justin Forsett plays with a chip on his shoulder.
The newest Detroit Lions running back is not afraid to admit it.
“I’m 5-8, 195 pounds and a seventh-round draft pick. Nine years (in the NFL), I still have a chip,” Forsett said on Wednesday, the first day he practiced with the Lions.
He was signed as a free agent on Tuesday to help boost the run game due to the absence of Ameer Abdullah and the chance the rookie Dwayne Washington could miss more time with a bum ankle. Also, Theo Riddick did not practice on Wednesday.
Lions coach Jim Caldwell couldn’t be certain when Forsett would know the offense well enough to play.
“He’s been around a bit, so he’s got a good sense of systems. Obviously he’s a guy that has had production. He’s certainly a guy who can create some space. He’s a tough runner, he can catch the ball. There’s a number of things that we think he’ll be able to do for us,” Caldwell said.
Forsett has buried his head in the playbook since arriving and expects to pick it up fairly quickly.
Even though he was cut by the Baltimore Ravens after three games (31 carries, 98 yards), the 30-year-old Forsett has a message for those who might think his career is over.
“Watch me,” he said.
Five things to know about Forsett:
1. He spent Thanksgiving 2012 as a member of the Houston Texans playing the Lions at Ford Field. Yes, he was that running back. He ran 81 yards for a touchdown in the Texans’ 34-31 overtime win. The Lions defense didn’t chase him because they thought he was down at one point.
“I didn’t actually know I was down once it happened, the adrenalin was pumping, I didn’t hear a whistle so I just kept going,” Forsett said. Replay showed that his left elbow and left leg were down and the play should have been whistled dead. Forsett admitted on Wednesday that he indeed was down. Unfortunately, Lions coach Jim Schwartz was so livid that he threw a red challenge flag before the review was called for by the officials so that prevented a review, per the rule at that time. (That rule has been changed.)
“I’ll remember the boos and the Twitter messages that I got on social media forever,” Forsett said.
2. Lions safety Glover Quin remembers Forsett from their season together (2012) in Houston. “I always find it very intriguing to see guys of his size to be able to stay in the NFL for this many years. Obviously they can do something well. You look at him Darren Sproles, Danny Whitehead, some of the smaller backs that can stay in the league for a long time,” Quin said. “They must know how to run the ball, they must can make plays in the pass game and they have to be able to pass protect. Generally you don’t see those guys as first- and second-down backs, you see them as third-down backs. To be a third-down back you have to be able to pass protect. The fact he’s been around that many years says a lot.”
3. Forsett could have signed with other teams but chose the Lions. “It’s just a good opportunity, I love coach Caldwell, I had him in Indy for my stint there. I know some of the guys here, it was a good fit,” Forsett said.
4. His versatility was certainly a plus in signing him. “Wherever they want me, I’ve done a lot of things in my career,” Forsett said. “I just want to be used.”
5. Forsett was with the Ravens when they played the Lions in the preseason so he is a little familiar with the franchise. “Young team, electrifying team, even in preseason we saw some of the weapons they had on offense,” Forsett said. “I was impressed by that I’m happy to be a part of it, I’m happy I’m here.”
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