It’s been more than a week since the Lions told wide receiver Titus Young that he needn’t bother coming to work and it doesn’t sound like they’ll be asking him back any time soon.
When Schwartz first sent Young, who wasn’t at practice Tuesday, home, he said it was because Young put himself above the team. He was asked whether Young would miss the rest of the season as a result.
“Potentially,” Schwartz said, via Anwar Richardson of MLive.com. “This is a decision who the best 46 were on Sunday. That will continue to be evaluated. There’s been times he’s been very productive in our offense. He’s been an asset for our offense, an asset for our team. That’s where he needs to get back to.”
Schwartz said that both the team and Young “needed a little time away,” before saying that his chances of playing again would be based on what he does when he’s with the team rather than what he does while he’s away. None of it left anyone with any idea of what the future holds for Young in Detroit, but the first game without him offered no evidence that they’d be calling him back because of need.
Matthew Stafford threw for 441 yards and Ryan Broyles, whose role expanded greatly with Young gone, had six catches for 126 yards. Young’s put up 383 yards in 10 games this season, so the offense clearly gets along just fine without him.