BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – SEPTEMBER 19: DeShon Elliott #32 of the Baltimore Ravens tackles Clyde Edwards-Helaire #25 of the Kansas City Chiefs during the first half at M&T Bank Stadium on September 19, 2021 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Todd Olszewski/Getty Images)
The Detroit Lions have signed DeShon Elliott, but is he the answer for them at the safety spot opposite Tracy Walker?
The Detroit Lions added a piece to their secondary, signing former Baltimore Ravens safety DeShon Elliott to a one-year on the same day he visited.
Elliott missed his entire 2018 rookie season due to a fractured forearm. In 2019 he only played in six games due to a knee injury. In 2021, Elliott was sidelined with a torn biceps/pectoral, again after only six games.
However, even with such a injury history, Elliott has the look of a tone-setter. The type of hitter the Lions’ secondary hasn’t seen since Bennie Blades back in the 1990s. If he can stay healthy, he could be a pivotal signing for a defense that has been pretty toothless in recent seasons. Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn and defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant truly worked wonders with a young and injury-thinned secondary last year, and Elliott is a young player himself approaching 25 years old (April 21).
Is DeShon Elliott the answer for the Lions opposite Tracy Walker?
Elliott has had some issues in coverage previously, and now he will find himself being tutored by Glenn and Pleasant.
Elliott’s willingness and zeal to lay the wood on opposing players could certainly be considered a root cause of his injury issues. Elliott is more than willing to give up his body for a big hit. The type of hit that can set the tone of a game, or change the course of a game.
The problem is any momentum that’s won by a big hit goes right down the drain if the player who administers it doesn’t get up.
Elliott is an addition made based on upside, on a “prove it” deal. He can’t be anointed the Lions’ answer opposite Tracy Walker until he proves it with his play and, most importantly, by staying healthy.