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Detroit has thrown the ball more than it has rushed it every season since 2001 according to ESPN Stats & Information. The closest the Detroit Lions have come to "balance" was in 2004, when Detroit ran the ball 407 times and attempted 505 passes.

In Detroit's more successful seasons, the Lions have trended much heavier toward the pass. In 2011, one of the two seasons Detroit made the playoffs this century, the Lions rushed the ball 356 times and had 666 passing attempts, completing 423 of them.

Last season, Detroit ran the ball 396 times and threw it 604 times, completing 365 passes. So while the Lions appeared to focus their draft on improving a run game that had its worst yards per carry since 2003, don't expect to see a massive play-call shift.

"It's all quarterbacking," former NFL QB Elvis Grbac said. "I got in a league where Drew Bledsoe was starting to come in and just in the last 10 years, retired since 2001, so it's been some time. But just the league in general, it's quarterback-driven. If you don't have a quarterback, you're screwed."

The story went on to say: A 50-50 split hasn't been typical for Jim Caldwell historically. In his three seasons as head coach in Indianapolis, the Colts never rushed more than 393 times in a season. They never threw less than 534 times in a year, and that was in 2011 when Peyton Manning was injured. The only sample size in which a team coordinated or led by Caldwell has had more runs than passes came during the Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl run in 2012, when Caldwell took over leading into Week 15. Through the final three weeks of the regular season and the playoffs, the Ravens ran the ball 249 times and passed it 235 times. The following season was more in line with what happened in Indianapolis, where Baltimore had 423 rushes to 619 passes.

Much of the same is expected this year, and the story mentioned how Grbac thinks QB Matthew Stafford has progressed nicely in the offense. The team lost pass-catching RB Reggie Bush, but seems to have a more than capable replacement in Ameer Abdullah, who looks like he's going to hurt the value of Theo Riddick. Both Joique Bell and Abdullah crack our top-31 backs, with Abdullah having top-25 potential in PPR leagues. Stafford is just 13th on our QB list, but if WR Calvin Johnson can stay healthy Stafford could crack the top-10 and be a nice value at QB with an ADP of the ninth round.

Ameer Abdullah has been as impressive as a back can be without pads over the offseason training program and minicamp. He’s proven to be a better receiver than the Lions initially thought and his quick twitch and speed were highlighted in offseason practices. He’ll be a big part of the Lions’ offense in 2015 and will also try and win the punt and kickoff return duties.

Most scouts seem to agree that Abdullah doesn’t project to be an every-down back, so Joique Bell’s between-the-tackles role should be safe, at least for this season. On the other hand, Theo Riddick’s role as the Lions’ third-down back is in serious jeopardy. If things break his way and he sees significant time on passing downs, Abdullah could ultimately post top 25 numbers in PPR formats.

Lions RB Joique Bell isn't worried about the knee injury that has sidelined him for the entirety of this offseason. He isn't worried about the Achilles either.

He really, really isn't.

Bell is so confident about this season, in fact, that he's predicting he'll become the second Detroit Lions running back to eclipse 1,000 rushing yards since 2004 -- and then some.

"I'm going to rush for over 1,200 yards," Bell told MLive.com. "That's the minimum. If I do less than that, I'll be surprised. I'll be disappointed.

"Anything more than that, I wouldn't be surprised at all."

Bell was the #14 RB in standard formats (#13 in PPR), while racking up 257 touches in 15 games. That works out to a 17.1-touch average. While he certainly benefited from Reggie Bush's injury-plagued season, Bell dominated the touches even when Bush was active and playing. He should continue to see RB1-type touches in 2015 with Bush out of the way, though the arrival of Ameer Abdullah is a concern. Abdullah has shined with Bell sitting out of offseason activities, but Bell should still see 14-15 touches per game.

Lions beat writer Kyle Meinke:

The most impressive rookie of minicamp, easily, has been tailback Ameer Abdullah. It's hard to say much of anything substantive about a tailback, when there are no pads and no contact, but for whatever it's worth, Abdullah has looked like Detroit's best rusher with Joique Bell still out. He's smooth in his breaks, and his first- and second-step acceleration is plus-plus. He just looks comfortable, which you can't always say about a rookie tailback. Again, at this level, where everyone is fast and physical, the true hallmarks of a good rusher are vision and tackle-breaking ability, neither of which can be seen until the pads come on. But you have to like the early returns from the second-round pick.

Most scouts seem to agree that Abdullah doesn’t project to be an every-down back, so Joique Bell’s between-the-tackles role should be safe, at least for this season. On the other hand, Theo Riddick’s role as the Lions’ third-down back is in serious jeopardy. With a small early-down role and significant time on passing downs, Abdullah could ultimately post top 25 numbers in PPR formats. He has upside from there if he's able to bite into Bell's workload.

Lions second-round pick Ameer Abdullah has impressed coaches with his quick feet and sure hands, and it's evident that the rookie running back will play significant minutes this fall. He'll get plenty more reps this week, as Joique Bell remains out recovering from off-season knee/Achilles surgeries.

Most scouts seem to agree that Abdullah doesn’t project to be an every-down back, so Joique Bell’s between-the-tackles role should be safe, at least for this season. On the other hand, Theo Riddick’s role as the Lions’ third-down back is in serious jeopardy. If he sees a significant role in the passing game while stealing a few early down carries, Abdullah could ultimately post top 20 numbers in PPR formats. Remember, OC Joe Lombardi came from New Orleans, where they like their running back committees.

Lions RB Ameer Abdullah has gotten plenty of reps with Joique Bell being out and he's looked good in the open OTA practices.

Lombardi is already impressed with how polished of a receiver Abdullah is turning out to be, and his quickness and elusiveness as a runner has shown in practice.

He’s a balanced runner -- low to the ground and he can stop and change directions on a dime. It never seems like defenders are able to square him up.

We’ll see what he looks like as a returner in training camp, but so far, it’s safe to say the Lions are impressed with their rookie running back.

Most scouts seem to agree that Abdullah doesn’t project to be an every-down back, so Joique Bell’s between-the-tackles role should be safe, at least for this season. On the other hand, Theo Riddick’s role as the Lions’ third-down back is in serious jeopardy. If things break his way and he sees significant time on passing downs, Abdullah could ultimately post top 25 numbers in PPR formats.

Ameer Abdullah ran for more than 1,600 yards in each of his last two seasons at Nebraska, but it’s his receiving skills that have pleasantly surprised the Lions through nine OTA practices this spring.

“I like Abdullah more every day,” offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said after Wednesday’s open OTA practice. “Every day you can see him do things that really excite you.

“He didn’t get a chance maybe to show everything he can do as a receiver at Nebraska, but he’s even better in that phase of the game than I thought when we drafted him, so it was kind of a bonus when you see how well he catches the ball and how well he runs routes.”

Abdullah's ability to stop and start and change direction could be a huge asset in space.

“He does a lot of things well for a young guy, but one thing you notice quickly is he can catch the ball,” head coach Jim Caldwell said. “He catches it and knows what to do with it when he gets it in his hands. He’s making good progress in that area.”

Most scouts seem to agree that Abdullah doesn’t project to be an every-down back, so Joique Bell’s between-the-tackles role should be safe, at least for this season. On the other hand, Theo Riddick’s role as the Lions’ third-down back is in serious jeopardy. If things break his way and he sees significant time on passing downs, Abdullah could ultimately post top 25 numbers in PPR formats.

“I think as a runner he has great balance,” Lions QB Matthew Stafford said of RB Ameer Abdullah after a recent OTA practice. “He’s obviously a low-to-the-ground guy. He seems to hide pretty well behind there and he’s got good vision.

“Out of the backfield, catching the ball, he’s great. He’s got great hands. He has a good feel for route running."

Most scouts seem to agree that Abdullah doesn’t project to be an every-down back, so most of Joique Bell’s between-the-tackles role should be safe, at least for this season. On the other hand, Theo Riddick’s role as the Lions’ third-down back is in serious jeopardy. If things break his way and he sees significant time on passing downs, Abdullah could ultimately post top 25 numbers in PPR formats.

Lions beat writer Kyle Meinke on Theo Riddick's role in 2015:

HC Jim Caldwell has already said he expects Riddick to be a bigger part of the fold this year. But I think it could end up being mostly as a pass-catcher. I could see a scenario where many of his reps came out of the slot.

Think of it this way: Detroit's running game was awful last year, finishing 28th. Reggie Bush struggled with ankle injuries for a couple months. And the Lions still gave Riddick only 20 touches on the ground.

If Detroit didn't think Riddick could help on the ground under those circumstances, I have a hard time seeing how it happens this year after adding Ameer Abdullah. Unless Riddick totally remakes his game, which I guess is possible. I'm just not banking on it.

Riddick averaged 5.0 catches for 53 yards for 13.2 fantasy points in PPR formats in the five games that Reggie Bush missed last season, but the Lions’ decision to draft Ameer Abdullah throws cold water on Riddick’s chances of becoming a dependable PPR back.

Joique Bell will open the season as the starter, but expect Ameer Abdullah to shoulder much of the rushing load early as well. Detroit would not have taken him that high if it planned on Theo Riddick being the No. 2. The powerful Bell and speedy Abdullah will complement each other, much as Bell and Reggie Bush did in previous years. Riddick probably will be used a lot like he was last year, as a receiver out of the backfield.

Most scouts seem to agree that Abdullah doesn’t project to be an every-down back, so Bell’s between-the-tackles role should be safe, at least for this season. On the other hand, Riddick’s role as the Lions’ third-down back is in serious jeopardy. If things break his way and he sees significant time on passing downs, Abdullah could ultimately post top 25 numbers in PPR formats.