Dave Birkett

Detroit Free Press

Ameer Abdullah played well enough in the first six quarters of the season that he looked like he might solve the Lions' long-standing problems at running back. Then he went down with a season-ending foot injury.

Speaking today for the first time since he underwent surgery to repair a ligament in his left foot, Abdullah said it was difficult to watch the Lions' running game struggle in his absence and he still believes that he will be a "premier" running back in the NFL.

"Coming into this league, I had no other plans but to be a premier NFL back in this league, and I know I will be," Abdullah said as Lions players cleaned out their lockers two days after a wild-card playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks. "It just takes patience, it takes prayer, it takes diligence, and coming from this injury — these injuries in the last year — it’s just that much more important to me."

Abdullah ran for 101 yards on 18 carries before he injured his foot in a Week 2 loss to the Tennessee Titans. Last year, he played the final two games of the season through a torn labrum in his shoulder and finished with a team-high 597 yards rushing.

General manager Bob Quinn said in an interview with SiriusXM NFL radio last week that the Lions intend to "try to get better at the running back position" this off-season, but Abdullah said he hopes that the team gives him another chance to be its lead back.

"I definitely understand the nature of the business," Abdullah said. "I understand they have to do things to make sure they’re in the best position for them, just like I have to do things to make sure I’m in the best position for myself. So whatever happens, happens. But I sure hope so."

The Lions finished 30th in the NFL in rushing this year (81.9 ypg) and managed just 49 disappointing yards on 15 carries in Saturday's 26-6 loss to the Seahawks.

Backup running back Theo Riddick also finished the season on injured reserve — Riddick had a cast on his injured left wrist today but declined to discuss specifics about the injury — and rookie seventh-round pick Dwayne Washington lost his starting job to Zach Zenner late in the season.

Abdullah said he hopes to be full-go by the time organized team activities start in April, and he said he'll be a different person whenever he gets back on the field.

"I was humbled (by the injury)," Abdullah said. "Like I said, I’ve never missed a game before, up till this year, so learned that you got to appreciate what I do have a lot more than I was. I always thought I was a very thoughtful person until everything was taken away from me, in a sense. When things were taken away, it forces you to think more and to understand that this is a blessing that I’ve been given this opportunity. So just heading into the future, everything just means a lot more."

While Abdullah declined to say exactly where he is in his rehab, he posted pictures on social media in recent weeks of himself riding an exercise bike.

Lions coach Jim Caldwell indicated that Abdullah wasn't that close to returning in the playoffs — "He’s coming along and he’s still in that mode. But coming along very, very well," he said — while Abdullah declined to predict how the season might have been different had he stayed healthy.

"You can answer that question just as truthfully as I can," Abdullah said. "Woulda, coulda, shoulda all day, but we can’t get into those games. What if this didn’t happen? It did happen. It’s a reality of the game, and we have to just think about the future, as opposed to reflecting on what if this didn’t happen."

After playoff loss to Seahawks, Detroit Lions have 'work to do'

Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.

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