Kerryon Johnson doesn’t know much about Darrell Bevell, but the little bit he knows —that Bevell worked with Pro Bowl running backs Adrian Peterson and Marshawn Lynch in Minnesota and Seattle, respectively — is enough to make him excited about the new Detroit Lions offensive coordinator.

“Hopefully he can see a shade of me in those guys and hopefully that (means he’s) giving me the ball,” Johnson said Thursday. “That’s what every running back wants. But like I said, he’s dealt with a lot of talent, he’s won a lot of games, he’s dealt with a lot of talented players at every position and we want to win, I’m sure he wants to win, and we can get it done together.”

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The Lions named Bevell their offensive coordinator on Wednesday, and perhaps no player stands to gain as much from the hire as Johnson.

The rookie running back led the Lions with 641 yards rushing in just 10 games this season; if history holds, he’ll play an even bigger role on offense going forward.

Bevell, in 12 seasons calling plays for the Vikings and Seahawks, fielded some of the NFL’s most dominant rushing teams.

In Minnesota, his offenses ranked in the top half of the NFL in rushing in all five of his seasons with the team. Peterson twice led the league in rushing under Bevell’s direction, and the Vikings reached the NFC championship game in 2009.

In Seattle, the Seahawks finished in the top four in the NFL in rushing every year from 2012-15 and made two Super Bowls with Bevell calling plays. Lynch had four straight seasons with more than 1,200 yards rushing and double-digit touchdowns.

“Obviously with my position, that makes me excited and I hope that is the direction we try to go in,” Johnson said. “But regardless of the direction I want us to go in, it’s about the team and how we win games. So if he wants to bring that and that’s where we go with it, that’s where we go with it. If not, if he sees our team go in a different direction and that’s what we do, as long as we win, I’m fine.”

Johnson, speaking by phone from Los Angeles, where he’s taking part in Panini’s rookie appreciation week in conjunction with the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl, said he’s 100 percent recovered from the knee sprain that knocked him out of the season’s final six games.

“Little bit too late, but it’s nice to be able to bounce back,” he said. “It doesn’t always happen with injuries, knee injuries to be specific, but I’m good now and that’s all that matters.”

Because he spent half of November and all of December rehabbing, Johnson said he won’t take much time off this offseason.

When he leaves Los Angeles this weekend, he’ll head straight to Auburn, Alabama, and start his offseason workout program as he prepares for what should be a bigger workload on offense.

Johnson averaged just 11.8 carries per game this season, well below what Peterson (19.6) and Lynch (18.5) averaged during their time with Bevell.

Johnson, at 207 pounds, is a different back than both those players — Peterson and Lynch both played about 10 pounds heavier — but he said he’ll be ready for more carries if that’s in the cards.

“Obviously, everybody wants the ball as much as they can, but that’s just not realistic,” Johnson said. “I play the game to win and if that includes 20 carries, it includes 20. This game is so sporadic. Obviously, our team isn’t finished so I’m sure we’re going to add more running backs. Just got to see how it goes.”

With LeGarrette Blount and Zach Zenner slated to become unrestricted free agents in March, the Lions will be in the market for another running back this spring in free agency or the draft.

Johnson said “anybody that wants to help me, I’ll take,” and he trusts that Bevell will get the most out of the backfield.

“From the things I’ve seen I know he’s very successful in Seattle, so I’m just ready to get in with him, let him pick my brain, get to pick his brain, we figure each other out,” he said. “One thing that I can tell coming from that culture and just knowing other people that come from that culture is I know he wants to win and that’s what I want to do, so surely with that mindset we can work together just fine.”

House of cards

At the NFLPA Bowl this week, Johnson, fellow rookie running backs Nick Chubb and Phillip Lindsay and about 20 other rookies are spending time with draft prospects, helping them prepare for the NFL, and signing a final batch of rookie trading cards for Panini.

Johnson said he wasn’t much of a card collector growing up, but his father and brother collected some baseball cards and to see his own image on a card now is "crazy."

“And just to know that people want it is very cool," Johnson said. "But it’s crazy. It really is. But it’s a cool thing. It’s a unique thing and I appreciate it."

Johnson said he hasn't talked much football yet with his fellow rookies, but he was impressed by the seasons they had. Saquon Barkley led all rookies with 1,307 yards rushing, Lindsay (1,037 yards) was second and Chubb (996 yards) third.

"I think this year as a whole, rookie running backs did very well, especially for a position they say is dead," Johnson said. "I think rookie running backs did very well this year."

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Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett. Download our Lions Xtra app for free on Apple and Android!