Detroit Free Press

Before every practice and game, Detroit Lions defensive lineman Jashon Cornell makes sure to take a knee, cross his chest and point skyward. He does so because over the past two years, he has realized how quickly the game can be taken away. Cornell missed his rookie season after tearing his Achilles in training camp. Then,

It’s hard to turn on the TV these days or scroll the Internet without seeing someone picking the Detroit Lions to do good things in 2022. One ESPN analyst predicted the Lions will make the playoffs this fall. A football analytics expert called them a contender to win the NFC North. And one longtime NFL

AJ Parker had a better rookie season than almost anyone could have expected. An undrafted rookie out of Kansas State, Parker started seven games, had one interception and was the Detroit Lions’ primary nickel cornerback for most of last season. But on Day 2 of mandatory minicamp Wednesday, Parker explained why he is taking nothing

Nearly 30 minutes after Day 2 of Detroit Lions minicamp had wrapped up on Wednesday, there were two players remaining on the field, catching balls from the JUGS machine. One was Kalif Raymond. That work ethic from the receiver, entering his sixth season in the NFL, helped him put together a career year in his first go-round in

They are building a new entrance to the Detroit Lions facility at Allen Park. Workers were buzzing around the parking lot on Tuesday morning, apparently building a new security checkpoint. It won’t win any games, and it won’t help them get to the playoffs. But the entrance is bound to look better, and it’s going

Rookie second-round pick Josh Paschal is not taking part in mandatory minicamp this week because of what Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell termed “a lower extremity injury.” “We’re trying to be smart with him,” Campbell said Wednesday before the Lions’ second minicamp practice. “There’ll be a couple of guys we back off of today just to

For Alim McNeill, giving up Doritos has been the most difficult part of an intensified nutrition regimen. During the offseason, the Detroit Lions’ second-year defensive lineman focused on his diet. He worked with nutritionist Amy Migdalia, wife of former Lions defensive tackle Nick Williams, on eating, hydrating and sleeping better. On Day 2 of organized team

T.J. Hockenson soon will be one of the highest-paid tight ends in the NFL, if not tops at the position. But the Detroit Lions star said he is most concerned with winning during his new deal, and he sounds convinced he can do it in Detroit. “I want to do that here so bad,” Hockenson

Shortly before the Detroit Lions took the field and kicked off their three-day minicamp Tuesday, coach Dan Campbell was asked, after all his intensive study and examination and film cut-ups, what jumped out at him about what the team needed to do better to improve in the red zone. “Yeah, well,” Campbell began in his

Penei Sewell had a standout rookie season starting games at left and right tackle, and Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell said veteran left guard Halapoulivaati Vaitai deserves an assist for Sewell’s play. Sewell and Vaitai formed a close relationship last season, while playing part of the season side by side, with Campbell joking the two

David Blough had just finished a 12-minute interview with a reporter Tuesday when he made a polite request. Make sure, Blough said, that whatever you write is about those guys. Blough had just finished a standout performance at the Detroit Lions’ first practice of minicamp Tuesday. Working with the second-team offense for the first time

With their first six practices of organized team activities in the books, the Detroit Lions are closing in on the end of their formal offseason program. The Lions host veteran minicamp Tuesday-Thursday this week, then one more week of OTAs before breaking for the summer. Minicamp is the only mandatory part of the offseason, and

Penei Sewell noticed similarities between racing and football when he toured Team Penske’s garage on Sunday in his first visit to an IndyCar race. Before serving as the grand marshal for the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear on Belle Isle, the Detroit Lions’ second-year offensive lineman was introduced to Roger Penske, General Motors CEO Mary Barra

For all the criticism he has taken as Detroit Lions quarterback, Jared Goff did have a successful run with the Los Angeles Rams. The first overall pick of the 2016 NFL draft, Goff made two Pro Bowls in his five seasons in L.A., helping the Rams reach the Super Bowl in 2018, and posted back-to-back 4,600-yard

There are advantages to being the old guy in one of the youngest locker rooms in the NFL. “They bring me juice boxes,” Detroit Lions defensive end Michael Brockers joked Thursday. At 31 years old, Brockers is the graybeard in a Lions locker room full of 20-somethings. He’s 10 years older than first-round pick Aidan

When his aunt picked him up from Ford Field after the Detroit Lions’ season-opening loss to the San Francisco 49ers last fall, Jeff Okudah sat in the car and cried. The diagnosis was not yet confirmed, but Okudah knew his season — the one he was so looking forward to after a rough rookie year

If Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson wants to call plays, there’s just one simple task he has to accomplish. “I would say this,” coach Dan Campbell said Thursday, “the first preseason game, if we put up 85 points, I’m going to name him right there. I’m going to walk off the field — 84

The Detroit Lions had no trouble fitting Josh Reynolds into their offense as a midseason addition last year, but new offensive coordinator Ben Johnson said that could be a little trickier to do this season with rookie receiver Jameson Williams. “It’s going to be a challenge cause you can’t really compare it to the Josh

After three straight years of struggling to get meaningful pressure on opposing quarterbacks, there is reason to believe the Detroit Lions will have a significantly better — maybe even good — pass rush this fall. The Lions have made schematic and personnel changes to their defense, moving from an odd- to even-man front and drafting

With eight weeks until training camp opens, Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell is in no hurry to pick an offensive play caller. New Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson handled play calling at the Lions’ organized team activity practice Thursday, as he did during the team’s open OTA last week, but Campbell said that decision was