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This is a fun breakdown of our OL against the Buccaneers and 49ers by a former NFL OL. With Kelce's retirement, I think our OL is the clear #1 going into the season.
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I've said it before, but a guy like Matt Prater did not have a great resume that included long field goals from college. He was cut from a few teams before he stuck with the Broncos and as he matured his leg got stronger. The same thing could happen with the Money Badger. I'd still like them to sign Jake Bates.Comment
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This is so awesome, from Ben Johnson:
Lions OC Ben Johnson opening up about his decision to return to Detroit. Johnson: "I'm not willing to go down the other path yet unless I feel really good about how it's gonna unfold." Wants to set himself up for a second contract. For now, he's enjoying Detroit.Comment
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"I hope to see the Lions in the Super Bowl before I die"
My friend Ken LComment
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"I hope to see the Lions in the Super Bowl before I die"
My friend Ken LComment
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Here is the Ben Johnson Press Conference. He is unusually wise about his own career. I coached as a second career, working over 50 seasons as a coach and as an employer of coaches. Your support system has more to do with your success than your ability to coach.
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He also knows his own worth at this point. Right now, it's less that he's trying to sell himself to teams, and more teams are trying to sell themselves to him.
He just needs to point at at opening and it's his right now. He can be picky.Comment
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"I hope to see the Lions in the Super Bowl before I die"
My friend Ken LComment
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The way Ben Johnson spoke about HCMCDC at the press conference makes me think that MCDC is Bane. Reminded me of that scene in the beginning of Dark Knight Rises where the guy is willing to just stay in the plane that is about to crash. Our HC is big and buff and his men are loyal to him.
Also might have something to do with Sheila pumping his bank account.
It's so strange that our organization is not only competent, but among the best. Only question is, where is the asteroid and how soon till it hits us?"Yeah, we just... we don't want them to go. So that's our motivation."
Dan Campbell at Green Bay, January 8, 2023.Comment
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It is such a weird feeling being the franchise that others are trying to emulate. Amazing.Comment
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TWENTYMAN: Minicamp Day 1 observations Jun 04, 2024 at 03:47 PM Tim Twentyman
Senior Writer
Defensive day: The team went through a lot of situational periods Tuesday in the first day of mandatory minicamp practice and it was also a heavy red zone day. I thought the defense had a heck of a practice and won the day. This defense wants to get more hands on footballs and generate more turnovers. Linebacker Jack Campbell had two interceptions off quarterback Jared Goff (one tipped), safety Brandon Joseph had a red-zone pick off Goff, and cornerback Khalil Dorsey had a pick-six off backup quarterback Hendon Hooker. How much more of a playmaking defense the Lions are in 2024 is going to determine how much better of a team they can be overall.
Practice report: The only player not in Allen Park for the start of minicamp was cornerback Emmanuel Moseley due to the birth of a child. Everyone else was around, but some of the bigger names not taking part in practice included tackle Taylor Decker, running back Jahmyr Gibbs, defensive lineman DJ Reader, cornerback Terrion Arnold, safety Kerby Joseph, outside linebacker Marcus Davenport and cornerback Brian Branch. Gibbs, Joseph and Davenport were working with trainers off to the side.
Back-to-back scores: Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has 17 career red-zone touchdowns (including the playoffs) and has proven time and again to be one of the craftiest in the business near the end zone. That was on display Tuesday with back-to-back touchdown grabs in a team red zone period. The first he saw a soft spot in the defense over the middle and sat down between defenders. Goff found him for an easy score. The second was a boot play where he juked a defender off the line of scrimmage and beat him to the pylon for an easy pitch and catch from Goff.
Charting the QBs: The team ran a 7-on-7 red-zone drill to end practice with each of the three quarterbacks getting two separate sets of four reps apiece. Here's how they finished:- Goff: 3-of-8 with two touchdown passes to wide receiver Kalif Raymond. He went 0-for-4 in the last rep with the first-team offense and threw an interception that Campbell baited him into. It was a fine play by the second-year linebacker.
- Hooker: 4-of-8 with touchdown passes to Raymond, running back Sione Vaki, wide receiver Maurice Alexander and wide receiver Donovan-Peoples Jones. Linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez dropped an interception. Overall, Hooker tended to hold on to the football a bit too long in red-zone drills and earned the ire of head coach Dan Campbell for taking a sack instead of throwing a ball away on one rep.
- Nate Sudfeld: 5-of-8 with two touchdown passes to wide receiver Kaden Davis and one to wide receiver Isaiah Williams. Don't be surprised if the battle for the backup quarterback job in training camp is tighter than people think between Hooker and Sudfeld.
"There has been noticeable growth from him last year," Campbell said of Brandon Joseph on Tuesday. "I would tell you even in this spring he's improved. He's a young guy that we like a lot. He puts the work in. He's smart, he's crafty. You really see him coming along here. There again, we're not in pads, this is early, but there is growth, we like where he's at right now."
Vaki in space: The rookie running back had a couple nice touchdown catches Tuesday, one on a screen pass and the other on a diving reception at the goal line that earned some oohh's from his fellow teammates.
Vaki is going to get a lot of run on special teams but one area that has stood out to me so far this spring is his playmaking potential in the pass game. He's got great hands. It's something to continue to monitor come training camp.#birdsarentrealComment
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Titi delivering the milkComment
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TWENTYMAN: Minicamp Day 2 observations
Jun 05, 2024 at 03:48 PM
Tim Twentyman
Senior Writer
Redemption season: Fourth-year defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike has caught my eye a couple times this spring. He's finally past the back injury that limited him his first two seasons. He's gained 15 pounds this offseason and has expanded his duties to play a little bit on the edge at the big end as well as inside. He made a really nice play Wednesday in the backfield that blew up a drill when he got to quarterback Hendon Hooker for a sack.
First-time duo: It was good to see veteran cornerback Carlton Davis III and rookie cornerback Terrion Arnold on the field together for the first time this spring. They were the two outside cornerbacks with the first-team defense most of the day Wednesday and have a good shot at being Detroit's Week 1 starters on the outside. Arnold continues to impress. He made a nice play knocking down a Jared Goff pass on a 3rd & 7 that forced a field goal try for the offense in a situational drill.
Jamo making plays: I thought wide receiver Jameson Williams had a nice day Wednesday. He made a lunging catch along the right sideline early in practice in a team drill. In the same drill, he made a contested catch over the middle. Later, Goff launched a deep ball down the right sideline in a 7-on-7 period and Williams made a nice over-the-shoulder grab after a little bit of hand fighting on tight coverage from Davis.
Better day for Hooker: After an up and down first minicamp practice on Tuesday, I thought Hooker had a much more consistent day Wednesday. There was a stretch early in practice where he connected on back-to-back touchdown throws to tight end James Mitchell and wide receiver Maurice Alexander. Then he launched a deep ball down the middle to wide receiver Kaden Davis, who made a great diving catch. He also made a terrific 16-yard touchdown throw in a tight window to wide receiver Kalif Raymond in the back of the end zone in a situational period. It was a good day for Hooker overall Wednesday.
And keep an eye on Davis come training camp. He's made some nice plays over the last couple days.
Kicking competition: Michael Badgley and James Turner got a chance to make a number of kicks during team situation periods. I had Badgley missing his first two kicks wide left from around 55 and 54 yards (I was under the goal posts). He made his next three kicks from shorter distances. Turner made all five of his kicks on the afternoon.
Competition raised: Head coach Dan Campbell put the offense in a tough spot down 34-28 with 15 seconds on the clock and the ball at the 16-yard line. A short completion to Williams got the ball to the 10-yard line with 11 seconds left. After a little scuffle between tackle Dan Skipper and linebacker Derrick Barnes, Goff threw high to wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown in the end zone with six seconds left. The final play of the drill was Goff going back to St. Brown in the end zone for a touchdown. Skipper was sure to let Barnes and the rest of the defense know it was a touchdown too. I like to see that kind of competitive spirit this time of year.
Passes defended: One quick observation on veteran cornerback Amik Robertson is he has a terrific ability to get his hand on the football. He's not the biggest (5-foot-8) or longest cornerback you'll see but he made a couple great plays knocking footballs out of the hands of St. Brown and Williams on Wednesday. I've noted a couple other times he's done it this spring. He competes hard and has a knack for getting his hand on the football.
Injury report: Cornerback Khalil Dorsey had his second straight pick-six off Hooker in as many days, but he left practice late with a lower leg injury that was being evaluated for severity after practice.#birdsarentrealComment
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Here's the catch. Very nice
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