Justin Rogers' Lions midseason grades

OFFENSE

Matthew Stafford, QB — Given he hasn’t been given consistent protection or had a viable ground game, Stafford has made due with what he’s had to work with. His biggest issue has been ball security, fumbling six times. He’s also been slightly less accurate this year, in part because of the pressure, but also because he’s been more aggressive downfield. That should be viewed as a welcomed trade. Grade: B

Ameer Abdullah, RB — Like Stafford, Abdullah’s production is sunk by his blocking. He’s done a good job making tacklers miss and gaining yards after contact. Unfortunately, first contact is often coming in the backfield. He’s under-utilized on third downs, in the pass game and in the red zone, but that’s on the coaching staff, not him. The two fumbles in Green Bay were discouraging and a situation worth monitoring. Grade: B

Theo Riddick, RB — With more healthy weapons this season, Riddick’s overall production is down, but he’s still making tacklers miss at a high rate in the open field. As a pass-catcher, he’s remains among the best at his position, although he’s uncharacteristically dropped two this year, one that resulted in an interception Lastly, he’s made impressive strides in pass protection. Grade: B

Darren Fells, TE — Fells has been a good, not great blocker, with more inconsistency than you’d like from a guy where it’s considered his primary skill. But he’s pleasantly surprised as a pass-catcher, matching his career-high with three touchdowns. He could have had five, but dropped one and was stopped just short of the goal line on another. Grade: B

Eric Ebron, TE — Let’s start with a positive – Ebron has significantly improved as a blocker. That’s flown under the radar with his struggles as a pass catcher. He’s coming off a good game in Green Bay, but he’s officially put three catchable balls on the ground and has a disappointing 195 receiving yards and one touchdown at the halfway point. Grade: D

Marvin Jones, WR — Jones has been the team’s top deep threat and red zone option to start the year, scoring five touchdowns. He’s on pace to match the 10 scores he had with the Bengals in 2013. No one on the roster is more reliable against tight man coverage and he’s gaining momentum, averaging six grabs for 110 yards the last three games. One criticism, he’s still dropping too many, letting three slip through his hands. Grade: B+

Golden Tate, WR — Tate is nothing if not consistent. He’s leading the Lions in receptions (50) and catches for first downs (25). He remains a lethal short-area option and ranks second among all receivers, behind only Pittsburgh’s Antonio Brown, in yards after the catch. And credit to Tate’s toughness, fighting through a sore shoulder after the bye to rack up 14 grabs for 199 yards during the two-game stretch. Grade: A-

Kenny Golladay, WR — Golladay exploded onto the scene with two touchdowns in the opener, but struggled the next two games with getting separation. A hamstring injury has sidelined him since Week 3 and his role will likely be reduced once he’s ready to go because of how well TJ Jones has played. Grade: C-

TJ Jones, WR — Jones has stepped up his game, adding weight in the offseason, and providing Stafford with a reliable third option. The fourth-year receiver has already doubled the production of his previous personal bests, catching 19 balls for 290 yards, with 17 resulting in first downs. Grade: B+

Greg Robinson, OT — It was an experiment worth taking, trading a low-round pick for the former No. 2 selection, hoping a change of scenery would jumpstart his career. But after a decent performance in the opener, Robinson has been the Lions’ worst lineman in pass protection. Worse yet, his run blocking has been beyond disappointing. Grade: F

Graham Glasgow, OG — Glasgow has been hot and cold. He had strong showings against the Giants and Steelers, with some bad games in between. You would have hoped for more consistency in his second season, but he still loses his individual assignments too often. Grade: C-

Brian Mihalik, OT — It was an inauspicious start for Mihalik, getting destroyed by Saints defensive end Cam Jordan while subbing in for the injured Rick Wagner. But Mihalik has impressively held his own the past two and half games, filling in at left tackle. Grade: C

Travis Swanson, C — After showing significant improvement last season, there was high expectations for Swanson coming into a contract year, but he’s been disappointing. He’s routinely overwhelmed at the point of attack and has given up 13 quarterback pressures, far too many for the position. Through eight games, he’s Pro Football Focus’ lowest-graded player at his position. Grade: D

T.J. Lang, OG — Outside of some durability issues, which costs him some practice time and forced him out of the lineup against New Orleans, Lang has been everything the Lions had hoped when they signed him as a free agent this offseason. He hasn’t allowed a sack and has been an above-average run blocker. He had some early-season penalty issues, but they’ve cleared up. Grade: B+

Rick Wagner, OT — Wagner had a few pass-rush breakdowns early in the year, but he too has largely delivered on offseason expectations. The Lions have looked much better running to the right side, behind Lang and Wagner, than to the left, with Robinson and Glasgow leading the way. Grade: B

DEFENSE

Ziggy Ansah, DE — The Giants’ terrible offensive line temporarily blinded us to Ansah’s ineffectiveness. Three of his four sacks came in that game and his 18 pass-rush pressures this season is a massive disappointment for the former Pro Bowler. He’s also been average, at best, against the run, with only one tackle for a loss. Grade: D+

A'Shawn Robinson, DT — Robinson got off to a sluggish start, but has really elevated his performance following the season-ending injury suffered by Haloti Ngata. The second-year man out of Alabama has made his biggest strides as a pass rusher and he’s still batting down throws, getting his hands on four at the line. His pick-six in New Orleans was beyond impressive. Grade: B+

Jeremiah Valoaga, DE — Expectations aren’t too high for the undrafted rookie. He’s been better as a pass-rusher than a run defender to start his career, getting pressure four times in 29 rush snaps. He was a healthy scratch for the first time this season against the Packers. Grade: C-

Cornelius Washington, DE — Washington has been a nice offseason addition, flashing the ability to be disruptive with power, both as a pass rusher and edge setter against the run. Grade: C

Anthony Zettel, DE — Zettel has cooled a bit after his hot start, but he’s been the team’s most impactful edge rusher this season, without question. His five sacks and 25 pressures are pacing the Lions through eight games. He’s also doing a nice job at the point of attack against the run. Grade: A-

Jeremiah Ledbetter, DT — Ledbetter has exceeded expectations for a sixth-round rookie, quietly doing the dirty work on the interior, with an occasional flash of the intriguing athleticism that got the Lions’ attention in the pre-draft process. Grade: B-

Haloti Ngata, DT — Ngata’s season ended prematurely due to a torn bicep, but before he went down, he was having a quietly productive year, especially as a pass rusher. His reputation as a dominant run stopper is in decline. He was surprisingly dominated up front by the Atlanta Falcons line, but most weeks, he was still effective enough. Grade: B

Jalen Reeves-Maybin, LB — Reeves-Maybin didn’t do much with his early-season opportunities and it wasn’t until Week 6 that he really started to work his way into a regular role in the defense. He’s a bit of a flex piece, with a body type between a strong safety and an ideal linebacking weight, but he compensates for size and strength issues with instincts beyond his experience. Grade: C

Akeem Spence, DT — Spence has some decent numbers, making eight run stops and pressuring the quarterback nine times, but he’s an inconsistent player who disappears for lengthy stretches. He plays with good leverage, but isn’t strong enough when opponents go at him with a combo block. Grade: C

Tahir Whitehead, LB — Moving back to the weakside, Whitehead has trimmed some of the coverage issues that plagued him in 2016, while making clear strides as a run defender. He’s firing aggressively after making quick reads and routinely showing good hand usage to evade would-be blockers and make stops. Grade: B+

Jarrad Davis, LB — Davis has been a menacing force when playing downhill. He’s an aggressive, read-and-react defender, who has disrupted his fair share of plays at or behind the line of scrimmage. He’s missing too many tackles in his first season, often due to poor angles, but he’s slowing up the ball carriers enough in those situations that it’s not hurting the defense. His coverage is very much a work in progress. Grade: C+

Nick Bellore, LB — A pleasant surprise after winning the final roster job out of camp, Bellore has been a good special teamer, while finding a recurring role in a handful of defensive packages. He struggled early on defense, but has been a capable piece in coverage. Oh, and he’s also randomly handled some fullback duties, including a memorable blowup block of All-Pro linebacker Luke Kuechly to help convert a short-yardage run. Grade: B-

Quandre Diggs, CB — Diggs has bounced back in a big way following his sluggish sophomore campaign. He’s been tough in coverage in the slot and, as always, a tremendous downhill player in run and screen support. It would have been a solid A, but we have to dock him for the 97-yard touchdown he allowed to Pittsburgh’s JuJu Smith-Schuster. That was a game-altering breakdown. Grade: A-

D.J. Hayden, CB — Hayden has eaten into Lawson’s playing time and the newcomer has been stickier in coverage, breaking up four throws, despite playing fewer snaps. And Hayden appears to be getting better as he gets more experience in the scheme and gains a great understanding of his responsibilities within it. Grade: B-

Nevin Lawson, CB — Lawson was quietly underrated last year, but he’s been underwhelming in 2017. He’s been subpar in coverage and he’s missed as many tackles, three, as he has broken up passes. And, as usual, his aggressive style has him leading the team in penalties – four for 55 yards. Grade: D+

Darius Slay, CB — Week after week, the Lions have asked Slay to follow the opponent’s best receiver around the field and he’s shut down many of the league’s finest. He’s doing a better job making plays this year, defending 10 passes, including a career-high three interceptions. He’s playing at a Pro Bowl level. Grade: A

Miles Killebrew, S — Killebrew started the season on fire, coming up with big stops and generating a pair of turnovers. His role has been reduced in recent weeks, but he’s been above-average against the run and made good strides in coverage, breaking up five throws. Grade: B

Glover Quin, S — Quin’s impact extends well beyond the box score, but he’s had no problem stuffing the stat sheet this year, snagging three interceptions, forcing two fumbles, recovering one he didn’t force and delivering clutch stop after clutch stop in the open field. None was more impressive than dropping Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb in the backfield on a fourth-down jet sweep. Grade: A

Tavon Wilson, S — The closer to the line of scrimmage, the better Wilson seems to play. He’s aggressive coming downhill and has made multiple plays in the backfield. In space, he’s not as consistent, and that aggressiveness defending the run occasionally draws him out of position on play-action. Grade: B-

Charles Washington, S — Washington has been a key special teams player, averaging nearly 20 snaps per game in the third phase. He’s also had a small role on defense, holding his own while playing 82 snaps in some nickel and dime looks, as well as filling in for Glover Quin after a concussion. Grade: B-

SPECIAL TEAMS

Matt Prater, K — Prater is 18-of-21 on the season, with all three misses coming from 50 yards and beyond. He’s earned those opportunities because of his ability to knock it home from 60. He’s made four from at least 55 yards out this season. He also deserves some praise for stepping in as an emergency punter in Week 1. Even if the stats weren’t pretty, he didn’t botch any. Grade: A-

Jamal Agnew, RS — Agnew has given the Lions a spark on special teams, returning two punts for touchdowns, while averaging a league-best 19.4 yards. And he rounds out the resume by leading the units in tackles. In a schematic wrinkle, the Lions have also been working the rookie cornerback in on offense and he’s doing well in the limited role. Grade: A