The BYE week is the ideal time for NFL teams to make alterations to their player roles. Some changes are subtle and immediate, while others take more of a long-term approach, the results of which won’t be felt until the following season. With the Detroit Lions currently on their BYE week, here are five players who should see their roles expanded.

Abdullah should get backfield touches

The Lions don’t want to overload rookie Kerryon Johnson, so they have split touches almost evenly with LeGarrette Blount. Blount has a role on this team, but he has struggled to make the most of his 9.4 touches a game only averaging 2.5 yards per carry.

Ameer Abdullah saw the field for the first time last Sunday but only on special teams as a kick returner. If Abdullah continues to be active on game days he should get an opportunity to steal some of Blount’s touches to determine if he can give the Lions more yards per touch.

If he can’t outperform Blount, then back to the bench, but if the team is activating him on game days only to take knees in the end zone then they are wasting their options.

Crosby should get snaps at guard

Rookie offensive lineman Tyrell Crosby spent all offseason training at tackle — primarily on the left side — and rightfully so as he was transitioning from Oregon’s unique offensive system and needed to acclimate to the differences at the position at the NFL level.

While Crosby needed time to transition to the NFL offensive tackle position, the system at Oregon should actually help him adapt to the guard position at an NFL level easier. At Oregon, they use their tackles very similarly to how the NFL uses guards, asking them to pull on run plays and track defenders in space — something Crosby excels at.

With T.J. Lang’s future in question because of his concussion history, the Lions need to be planning now for the future in case they need to rely on Crosby sooner rather than later.

Practices are only observed by the media in a limited capacity during the season and players are restricted from discussing positional movement, so it’s possible Crosby has already seen some reps at guard, but if he hasn’t, now is a perfect time.

Ansah should get snaps inside

Once healthy — and yes who knows when that will be — Ezekiel Ansah will bring a new dimension to the Lions defense, but the team would be wise to not let his return take away too many opportunities from Romeo Okwara.

Okwara has shown well in the four games he has been with the Lions, and while he still has flaws to his game, he has shown the upside to warrant a continuation of high snaps.

The ideal way to keep both Okwara and Ansah on the field at the same time is to situationally use Ansah on the interior at the 3/4i-technique — thus keeping Okwara at defensive end — where his athleticism can be an advantage over the guards who he would match up against.

Powell should be active and see the field

With Jamal Agnew likely on the shelf for the impending future the Lions will be looking for a replacement punt returner. Powell has shown the ability to be a competent punt returner in the preseason and could be the most explosive option on the current roster.

If Powell wins the punt returner job then, like Abdullah, he shouldn’t be limited to special teams only. Powell still likely won’t be more than the fifth option at wide receiver but he has an explosive skill set and offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter would be wise to scheme in a few specialty plays — like they did with Agnew on offense.

The Lions have kept Powell on the 53-man roster for a reason, now is the time to see what he’s got.

Walker should get snaps in the slot

Keeping with the theme of replacing Agnew, his slot role on defense will require multiple players to fill his role and one of the players should be Tracy Walker.

Walker has mostly been relegated to a deep safety role, where Glover Quin has rolled down into the slot, but as we observed from Walker in Week 2 against the 49ers, he has the length and nose for the ball to justify a shot in slot coverage.

Walker is the future at safety for the Lions and now is the time to expand his duties while also giving the team a long and instinctive option at a position of weakness on the defense.