ORCHARD PARK, NY - AUGUST 29: Kyle Sloter #1 of the Minnesota Vikings looks to throw a pass during the first half of a preseason game against the Buffalo Bills at New Era Field on August 29, 2019 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images)

In a meaningless Week 17 game at Ford Field this Sunday. The Detroit Lions should see if Kyle Sloter can match his preseason success.

It’s been a long time since the Detroit Lions have had a competent quarterback backing up Matthew Stafford. Like six years ago in 2013 with Shaun Hill long time.

So before you re-sign quarterback Jeff Driskel, David Blough or spend a mid to late-round pick on a rookie in a critical offseason … the Lions should see what they have in fourth-string quarterback Kyle Sloter in a meaningless Week 17 matchup versus the Green Bay Packers.

It’s been a month since Thanksgiving but it feels like so much longer since Detroit Lions third-string quarterback David Blough had his 15 minutes of fame in Detroit. After showing nice pocket awareness and a strong arm while posting a passer rating of 87.6 in his Week 13 debut against the Chicago Bears. Blough has since proven it was only beginners’ luck with a passer rating of 60.9, 50.4 & 78.0 in the following weeks.

Now that the Blough experiment has seemingly run its course, why not see what you have in Sloter? The Detroit Lions have nothing to lose – unless they win … so it’s more than worth it to see if Sloter can save a resource spent this offseason in another quarterback. Sloter is signed through 2020, but as of now the returning QB’s in Detroit are Stafford, Blough, and Sloter. I don’t think anyone is comfortable with that backup situation at the moment.

Sloter played himself into sort of a preseason hero with the Minnesota Vikings this year. Posting good numbers going 39 of 51 for 76.5 completion percentage and a 120.0 passer rating. I get it, it’s only preseason, but that’s all the tape anyone has on Sloter thus far at the NFL level. Which is even more of a reason to see how it translates to the regular season while still under team control.

The Lions have been basically throwing darts at backup quarterbacks all season hoping something sticks with Tom Savage, Josh Johnson, Connor Cook, Chad Kanoff, David Fales, Joe Callahan, Luis Perez, Driskel, Blough, and Sloter. That’s ten different signal-callers behind Stafford in one season.

Ten opportunities but only one took advantage of it and looked like an NFL caliber quarterback to me in Driskel, and he’s a free agent come 2020.

The Detroit Lions should use the regular season opportunity to see if Kyle Sloter looks like he belongs in the big-time. It’s important to evaluate whether they have any other quarterback on the roster beyond Matthew Stafford worth bringing back next season. I expect to see our first Sloter sighting this Sunday.