ORCHARD PARK, NY - AUGUST 28: Ryan Broyles #84 of the Detroit Lions is taken down after a reception by Sam Miller #47 of the Buffalo Bills during the second half of a preseason game at Ralph Wilson Stadium on August 28, 2014 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) ORCHARD PARK, NY - AUGUST 28: Ryan Broyles #84 of the Detroit Lions is taken down after a reception by Sam Miller #47 of the Buffalo Bills during the second half of a preseason game at Ralph Wilson Stadium on August 28, 2014 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

By Ashley Dunkak

@AshleyDunkak

CBS DETROIT – Some Detroit Lions fans wonder why the team has used wide receiver Ryan Broyles so sparingly. A second-round pick in 2012 and finally healthy, Broyles has only two catches for 25 yards this season.

Lions head coach Jim Caldwell answered the question Thursday.

“Probably the simple reason is because of the fact that he does exactly what Golden Tate does, and I hope that kind of gives you an indication,” Caldwell said. “It’s hard to pull Golden out of there and say, ‘Hey, Ryan, you go in there and do what Golden’s been doing.’ Golden has been performing extremely well, so it’s difficult. Ryan, I believe, without question I believe, probably like the fans do, the guy, he can make plays and that kind of thing, but I think the guy whose position which he would end up taking in that particular incident is playing extremely well right now.”

Tate, whom the Lions acquired this offseason, has snagged 80 catches for 1,136 yards through 12 games. A quarter of the season remains, and Tate has already had the best season of his career in terms of statistics.

Tate’s production helped the Lions continue to thrive even during the extended absence of star wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who was severely limited or out entirely for five games in the season’s first half.

The Lions have a record of 8-4, and the playoffs look like a given if the team can stay the course. Detroit is expected to notch another win Sunday, when the Lions host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-10). Caldwell has said repeatedly, however, that he emphasizes daily to players that they cannot look ahead.

“Most of us in our age group have raised families, and often times you have to keep reminding those youngsters sometimes exactly what has to be done until it gets to the point where it’s ingrained, and you can’t ever think that they have it yet until the point where they demonstrate it over and over and over again. I’m new here, our staff is new here for the most part, what we’re trying to do here is different, and so it is my job to make certain – it’s like the clarion call that I’ve got to continue to reinforce it, continue to talk about it, continue to establish what’s important to us, how we think. We have to establish a way of winning, how we think it’s going to be done.

“We continue to remind them,” Caldwell added. “Now how do we do it? Several different ways. We do it through examples. We do it through examples of other sports, other teams, examples of things that maybe we’ve read. There’s a number of different ways, and every week is a little bit different. This week was on focus, and we used a comparison to what Bill Gates’ first meeting with Warren Buffett, and Bill Gates’ mother was the host, and she asked them what would they determine by using one word was the most important part of their success, and both of them identified the exact same word, and that word was focus.”