Detroit Lions like look of healthy RB Ameer Abdullah in OTAs

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Running back Ameer Abdullah made his long-awaited and highly anticipated return to Detroit Lions practice on Wednesday during OTAs, and did so in a blue No. 21, ditching the red no-contact jersey he was relegated to last season.

All of which was a sight for the Lions' sore eyes.

"Ameer looks good," head coach Jim Caldwell said. "He's coming along, just like everybody else. They're getting their feet underneath them, getting out there for the first time, moving around a little bit on the grass in a team-oriented setting. We've got a few guys that are working their way through some things."

Theo Riddick is one of those guys. The backup running back hopped on the field for a handful of individual drills, but was otherwise inactive as he works his way back from double wrist surgery.

Abdullah (foot) and Riddick (wrists/ankle) missed a combined 20 games last season, which thrust backups like Zach Zenner and Dwayne Washington into featured roles, and sent the Lions reeling to the bottom of the league. They were third in rushing yards per game in the two games Abdullah played. They fell to 27th without him, and their 81.9 yards per game overall were fewer than what they produced when they finished dead-last in 2015.

It came as a bit of a surprise, then, that Detroit didn't draft a running back, nor sign one in veteran free agency, despite kicking the tires on guys like LeGarrette Blount and Adrian Peterson. They believe Abdullah is better than anybody they could have acquired, especially once they got out of the first day of the draft, and are proceeding with Abdullah despite his injury-plagued 2016.

He certainly appeared healthy on Wednesday. The practice was in shorts, but Abdullah's athleticism stood out, especially as he ducked and dodged reporters wishing to inquire about his return.

As the Lions ease him back, Zenner also got some first-team reps in the backfield.