The Facts: While the Lions -- with Mike Martz at the offensive helm -- will always be considered a passing team, HC Rod Marinelli has made it clear that he wants the Lions to have the ability to be a power running team. They won't do it all the time, but there will be points in games where the Lions will go "big" and try to bulldoze the ball down the field. That's where Duckett comes in.

Diehards Line:As MLive.com beat man Tom Kowalski suggests, Duckett is going to earn his salary running between the tackles and get the punishing yards. The Lions like him in that role because he still has the wheels to turn a small gain into a huge play. And since he's there as insurance for Kevin Jones (as is Tatum Bell), Kowalski notes that team officials believe Duckett could carry the load if for some reason that need arises. ... As noted previously on this site, Duckett wants to get into the mix in the rest of the offense as well and has raised some eyebrows with his hard work in conditioning and dedication to understanding the offense.