The Detroit Lions appear set with their top four options at wide receiver – Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, Danny Amendola and Jermaine Kearse – but the battle for the fifth (and maybe sixth) spot(s) could come down to Andy Jones vs. Travis Fulgham.

When Jones entered the league with the Cowboys, he got an opportunity because of an injury ahead of him but was passed by a rookie on the depth chart. Next, he landed with the Texans where again, an injury opened a door for him, and yet again he was passed by a rookie.

Now Jones faces this identical situation with the Lions, where an injury to Marvin Jones has afforded him an opportunity to see all the first-team reps during organized training activities (OTAs) and minicamp. But directly behind him on the depth chart is sixth-round rookie Fulgham.

Can Jones change his fate and hold off the rookie this time or is history destined to repeat itself? Let’s take a close look at what these two receivers need to do in order to make the 53-man roster.

The traits the Lions will most likely be looking for in fifth or sixth wide receiver include developmental upside, reliable hands, blocking skills, and heavy special teams contributions.

Developmental upside

Jones has been a familiar name to Lions fans over the past two seasons and his on-field experience is likely what led to his insertion into the starting lineup this spring. But Jones is still young — he’s a week away from his 25th birthday — and is still developing the nuances of being an NFL wide receiver.

In camp this offseason, he had days where he made mistakes and others where he showed a lot of promise and the ability to contribute on a weekly basis. Overall, there have been more positives than negatives this spring.

Fulgham has been less consistent than Jones but he has stood out in his ability to make the big play. His most notable improvement is that he was making catches at the end of spring camp that he wasn’t making at the beginning.

“A prospect deserving of the ‘ascending player’ label,” Dane Brugler of the Athletic said, “Fulgham steadily improved in the past four seasons at Old Dominion and has yet to play his best football. With his 6-foot-2, 215-pound frame with near-34-inch arms, Fulgham has the talent to find the field on money downs as a rookie, using his size and adjustment skills to be productive.”

Edge: Fulgham

Reliable hands

This is an area both players can improve on and it will come with experience and opportunity.

In 2018, Jones was targeted 24 times, catching 11 passes (45.8 percent) for 80 yards and a touchdown. By the time Jones was inserted into the Lions lineup, the offense was a shell of its former self and it was hard to expect him to make an impactful difference, but those stats definitely need to be improved on.

As a rookie, there’s a lot of unknown about Fulgham’s ability to catch balls at an NFL level but as noted in the section above, he was making plays late in camp that he didn’t early, illustrating improvement.

Edge: Even

Blocking skills

If they both end up making the 53-man roster, it will likely be because they excel as blockers.

Jones only saw 139 snaps last season, but if he had enough to qualify, he would’ve graded out as Pro Football Focus’ (PFF) No. 2 blocking receiver in the NFL. This may be Jones’ best attribute and for a team that is shifting to more run first concepts, it’s an extremely valuable skill.

This is also an area in which Fulgham thrives. “Potentially the best stalk blocker among wide receivers in the entire NFL Draft class,” Brad Kelly of the Draft Network said. “Collapses the space on defensive backs, engages contact and drives his feet with low hips. Lateral agility keeps his frame in-between defensive backs and ball carriers. Works his hands inside and will replace them at a solid pace. Drives and finishes defensive backs as they struggle to disengage. Has shown dominating traits for his stalk blocking and maximum effort even in the waning moments of clear losses.”

Edge: Even

Special teams contributions

Special teams is another area where Jones thrives and is something Lions coaches/front office put a premium on. Despite only playing in eight games, Jones still saw nearly 20-percent of the Lions special teams snaps for the season and ended the season with a special teams grade of 85.6 from PFF, the highest on the team.

With no pads on in OTAs and minicamp, it’s difficult to truly gauge Fulgham’s success on special teams, but he was included in all special teams drills and showed great speed as a gunner. Right now, with the limited media access, there’s no way to definitively tell his progress.

Edge: Jones

Conclusion

Jones has a balanced package of skills teams look for in a fifth or sixth receiver but he lacks the upside of Fulgham. With both excelling as blockers, this competition could come down to two things: consistency and special teams contributions.

Jones should enter training camp with an edge overall but if Fulgham continues to improve, he could find himself rising up the depth chart. We also shouldn’t rule out both finding their way onto the 53-man roster.