Affirmation, not revelation.
That’s what Dan Campbell was looking for from his rookie class this week against the New York Giants — affirmation they belonged, not some big revelation in play. And in two joint practices, that’s exactly what he got.
“You want to see growth,” the Detroit Lions head coach said before Wednesday’s practice. “And there again, you’re not looking for these massive jumps, you just want to know, a different level of competition and everything goes up that, man, they continue to grow and take another little step up. And I felt that out of some of our young guys, which is encouraging.”
TUESDAY’S OBSERVATIONS: Lions like how they fared vs. Giants: ‘It was a good day’
SHAWN WINDSOR: Lions will be faster, thanks to their rookies. It may be why they’re better, too
Campbell mentioned safety Brian Branch, running back Jahmyr Gibbs, tight end Sam LaPorta and a pair of undrafted rookies — defensive back Starling Thomas V and receiver Dylan Drummond — among the first-year players who impressed Tuesday, which should come as no surprise to anyone who’s been following Lions training camp.
Gibbs and LaPorta, two of the Lions’ first three draft picks, will play key roles on offense this fall and have been consistent performers since spring. Branch has taken the bulk of starter reps at the slot cornerback position the past two weeks as one of the most pleasant surprises of camp. And Thomas and Drummond are closing in on back-end roster spots and likely will make my first 53-man roster prediction when I knock that out this weekend.
I spent Wednesday’s practice watching the Lions defense after focusing on the offensive field Tuesday, and I scribbled Branch’s name down a handful of times for his eye-catching play.
He had a would-be sack on a nickel blitz on Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, stripped a catch out of receiver Parris Campbell’s hands to force an incompletion, and on one play seemed to levitate in the air, just missing knocking down a pass by Jones at the line of scrimmage.
Thomas didn’t make any plays of that magnitude, but he continues to hold his own with the second-team defense. And while I didn’t spend enough time watching Gibbs, LaPorta or Drummond to get a read on their days, Gibbs nearly made the highlight catch of practice when both rosters came together for one final period to end the day.
“I know I caught it, but I don’t know if I was in,” Gibbs told me after practice. “I hit the pylon.”
More on Gibbs’ near-TD in a bit, but at the midpoint of training camp, it’s clear the Lions are counting on him and several of his classmates to be major contributors this fall on a team that has Super Bowl aspirations.
It’s not unusual for rookies to play key roles on contenders. The Kansas City Chiefs started rookies at running back, defensive end and cornerback in last year’s Super Bowl. But the Lions are well on their way to having three straight above-average rookie classes, and that’s franchise-changing.
In 2021, they drafted two cornerstone players in offensive lineman Penei Sewell and receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. Last year, they added another pillar in Aidan Hutchinson and several other primary contributors. And this year, the Lions could get early contributions from five of their first six picks — everyone but injured quarterback Hendon Hooker.
That’s a tip of the cap to general manager Brad Holmes and his scouting staff, as well as Campbell and his coaches for the trust they put in young players and their ability to develop. And it’s a nod to the caliber of player the Lions have brought in, too, and their grasp of exactly what they’re being asked to do.
“We got a lot of young guys that I feel like are growing,” Campbell said.
More observations from Wednesday’s practice:
LB Barnes seems more sure of himself
As mentioned, I spent the bulk of Wednesday’s practice watching the Lions defense, and I came away with mixed impressions. The Giants had a couple long runs early in team period and scored two red zone touchdowns in three plays to end the day.
That was hardly the type of finish Campbell and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn wanted to the week, but there were some positives that showed up, too. Second-year defensive lineman Josh Paschal had a strong day Wednesday and has had a good camp overall; his emergence gives the Lions another pass rusher in what’s shaping up to be a formidable group.
Campbell said Derrick Barnes played well Tuesday, and I thought the third-year linebacker showed up again Wednesday. Barnes dropped an interception on a pass from Daniel Jones, but he’s playing faster than he did in previous seasons and seems to be more sure of himself on the field.
I asked Barnes for his assessment of the defense the past two days.
“I think yesterday we had a better intensity, better time of, we had that mindset of we’re going to go get it,” Barnes said. “Today, I would say opinion, and the whole defense would probably speak the same way, a little sluggish but it’s good work for us and that’s one of those wake-up calls, like we know we got to bring it each and every day. The good teams, championship teams, top-five defense, they come out and put it on film every day, and that’s what you have to do in order for us to go where we want to go.”
Giants hold off Lions pass rushers
I was able to get a good vantage point for some of Wednesday’s one-on-one pass rush drills, and the Giants offensive line mostly held the Lions’ pass rush group at bay in the reps I saw. Charles Harris had a nice rush on Andrew Thomas, sinking low to turn the corner, and James Houston made a nice inside move on a right tackle whose number I didn’t catch.
But Hutchinson was stymied by a right tackle in his one rep I caught, rookie John Michael Schmitz stoned Isaiah Buggs and knocked the big defensive tackle to the ground and Brodric Martin got no meaningful penetration in his rep against Jack Anderson.
Christian Covington did have a nice pass rush rep and another would-be tackle-for-loss on a screen pass in team period. I haven’t mentioned Covington much in my observations because it’s sometimes hard to get a good read on who does what in the trenches from my vantage point at camp. But he has had a nice summer overall, is a reliable veteran and could push for a roster spot depending on how many interior linemen the Lions keep.
Kerby vacuums up Jones
In seven-on-seven red-zone drills, Jones was 2-for-4, with both passes going for touchdowns. Kerby Joseph broke up a pass across the middle in seven-on-sevens after the Lions appeared to take away Jones’ first read, and Jones was forced to throw the ball away a second time due to good coverage on the back end.
Saquon Barkley beat Harris in coverage on one TD, and Branch gave up the other on a short slant.
Tyrod Taylor threw touchdown passes on both of his seven-on-seven reps, as the Lions were a little leaky near the end zone.
Anzalone gets beat
The Lions didn’t fare much better in Wednesday’s move-the-ball period, when the Giants offense started with a first-and-10 at the Lions 30-yard-line.
Barnes made a nice read to jump a pass to Jalin Hyatt on the first play of the period, but couldn’t hold onto the interception. C.J. Gardner-Johnson made a would-be tackle-for-loss on a bubble screen to Parris Campbell on the next play, but Darius Slayton got behind Alex Anzalone for an easy touchdown catch on third-and-10, and Jones converted the ensuing two-point play with another pass to Slayton.
Playing with the second-team defense, Martin and Will Harris made a run stop in the backfield on the first play from scrimmage, and Martin had a sack up the middle on third-and-2, but Jamison Crowder beat Harris for what looked like a touchdown on fourth-and-8. Paschal pressured Taylor on Crowder’s TD, though I didn’t think he was close enough for a sack. Coaches re-spotted the ball at the 20-yard line after the catch, and Covington made his TFL two plays later.
Chase Lucas, who has taken most of the second-team reps at slot cornerback over the past week, had a nice pass breakup on a pass to Bryce Ford-Wheaton in move-the-ball period, Malcolm Rodriguez broke up a pass one play later on fourth-and-2, when Paschal was in the backfield with pressure again, and Cam Sutton made a diving pass breakup on a slant to Slayton in the end zone.
Secondary looks deep
The Lions have good depth in their secondary with eight players I see as a lock for roster spots: Sutton, Gardner-Johnson, Joseph, Branch, Thomas, Will Harris, Jerry Jacobs and Tracy Walker. Emmanuel Moseley will either be on the 53-man roster or the physically unable to play list to start the season, depending on the health of his knee.
Lucas, a seventh-round pick out of Arizona State last year, is one of a handful of players vying for the final 1-3 spots — along with safeties Ifeatu Melifonwu and Saivion Smith and undrafted rookie cornerback Steven Gilmore — with special teams likely to be a separating factor
On Wednesday, Melifonwu played on the first-team kick cover unit, Gilmore, Smith and Khalil Dorsey worked with the twos, and Lucas, Smith and Tae Hayes took second-team reps on kick return.
Gibbs’ big play
As they did Tuesday, every player on the Lions and Giants gathered together around one field for the final red zone period of practice. Both first-team offenses started with a first-and-goal at the 10 and scored quickly. Jones threw a touchdown pass to Darren Waller through the outstretched arms of a blitzing Branch on the first play, and Jared Goff needed only three snaps to get the Lions in the end zone on a touchdown pass to St. Brown.
David Montgomery had a run of about 8 yards or so on the Lions’ first offensive play and appeared to score on the next snap, but his TD run was called back by an illegal motion penalty, which set up St. Brown’s score.
The second-team offenses started first-and-10 from the 18, and Taylor needed just two plays to lead the Giants to the end zone again. After a short pass to his running back on the first play, Taylor bootlegged to his right off a run-fake and found tight end Daniel Bellinger alone for an easy touchdown.
Nate Sudfeld’s second-team series didn’t go quite as well for the Lions, though Gibbs nearly ended it in dramatic fashion. The Lions started the drive with a holding penalty and Sudfeld ran into a sack on second-and-11. After a short gain on third down (when the Giants declined another Lions penalty), Gibbs made a leaping catch in traffic near the front of the end zone but an official near the play waved the pass incomplete, out of bounds, as several Lions in the area voiced their displeasure with the call.
Quick hits
∎ One light moment from practice Wednesday: Jacobs grabbed a water bottle from a trainer and brought it over to four fans in the front row to give them squirts of water on a hot day.
∎ Pistons forward Isaiah Livers, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and former NFL GM Rick Spielman — brother of Lions special assistant Chris — were among the notables at Wednesday’s practice.
Whitmer’s appearance, her first training camp trip in five years as governor, was especially notable. As my friend Larry Lage from the Associated Press pointed out, she’s the latest in a string of politicians to stop by Lions practice this summer, along with U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Ann Arbor) and Michigan Rep. Joe Tate (D-Detroit) — Speaker of the House this year and a former Michigan State offensive lineman — among others.
We’re coming up on an election year for some, politicians are known for wanting to be around winners, and that tells you all you need to know about how the Lions are viewed these days.
∎ One more week of open training camp and joint practices with the Jacksonville Jaguars next week, then we’re done with observations and onto a regular season-like practice schedule.
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.