The Detroit Lions had the worst rushing offense in the league a season ago. They have not had a 1,000-yard rusher in a season or a 100-yard rusher in a game since 2013.
But watching the Lions against the Oakland Raiders offered something preseason games often do for so many teams around the NFL.
Friday night offered hope.
Kerryon Johnson, against mostly Oakland’s second-team defense, looked like the strong, shifty, potentially game-changing back Detroit has been searching for since Reggie Bush in 2013 (and really, since Barry Sanders in the 1990s).