Darrell Bevell Wants Kenny Golladay To Be Dominant like DeAndre Hopkins and Michael Thomas

Read more on how Darrell Bevell wants to use Kenny Golladay in Detroit's offense.

Kenny Golladay put together a career year a season ago with a league-leading 11 touchdowns and a career-high 1,190 receiving yards. 

Lions offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell wants him to take the next step toward becoming a dominant No. 1 wide receiver in 2020.

"Really, you want him to be thought of in those upper-echelon guys, with the (DeAndre) Hopkins and Michael (Thomas) and those type of players, where he really is dictating to the defense like how they have to cover," Bevell said Saturday during a Zoom video conference with Detroit media. "Sometimes, that's where that guy gets double-covered. He's worried about all the time, and you help your teammates. But, when you're in that go-to opportunity and everyone knows that Kenny Golladay is getting the ball and everyone knows that he's still going to make a play, that's really where we're trying to get him to. Where he's that dominant-level player."

Golladay has the advantage of having a year of experience playing in Bevell's offense. 

And with longtime Detroit franchise passer Matthew Stafford returning under center and most importantly, being healthy from all accounts, Golladay should be in store for another hugely productive campaign this upcoming season. 

Rookies are behind the 8-ball

Meanwhile, Detroit's first-year pros aren't so lucky. 

Not only have they never played a down in the NFL, but they also lost out on the chance to participate in minicamp and preseason games and won't start taking part in actual training camp practices until Wednesday due to COVID-19 safety protocols. 

According to Bevell, all of the Lions' rookies are "behind the 8-ball a little bit."

"In terms of the information, I think they're going to be able to handle some of that," Bevell said. "But, still you have to have the applied science, and you got to get there out on the grass and be able to see them react and read." 

As for the first-year offensive linemen Jonah Jackson and Logan Stenberg, it's going to be essential for them to get on the practice field in Allen Park and practice their various combinations, according to Bevell. 

"There's going to be guys, you know in (the) offensive line, you've always heard me talk about it -- you know, the combinations and how your guy next to you is coming off a combination, how they communicate, how they pass things off," Bevell explained. "So, every position has just little nuance to it, that really we need to see those guys get on the field and how fast they can pick up on that kind of thing." 

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