Yeah...I learned 0 from this game as far as impact for the season, even as ugly as it was...unless the whole oline goes down, seeing a lacking second unit doesn't tell me how a replacement 1 piece will i.pact the whole unit...pretty sure this was just about filling in the bottom third of the roster...
That said, Cota looking legit to make the 53
Cota looks good Mitchell and Green have caught every pass thrown their way
Post by goldenlions on Aug 20, 2023 23:15:37 GMT -6
I am thinking we won't seee any starters at all in a preseason game. I'm not sure I agree with DC if that happens. Considering almost every other team is giving their fans something in these preseason games. I have to wonder if the Lions could come out cold to start the season, since they had no actual game reps with the "starters" in pre-season. I get it, I think DC is worried some of these guys will get injured in pre-season and that could hurt them down the line. But I don't see other teams being scared like that. As far as I can tell so far only a handful of teams haven't given their first team at least a series. And most of the teams in the league had joint practices last week so I don't know if that is a real excuse that Dan Campbell uses to not play the starters.
Maybe I am just bored and want Sept 7th to get here already.
Last Edit: Aug 20, 2023 23:16:12 GMT -6 by goldenlions
Post by Blaming Brad on Aug 21, 2023 8:26:24 GMT -6
I think it's a mistake not to put the main starting unit in for at least a series or 2, especially given the week 1 opponent. Even Mahomes got some reps in.
Post by badnews3123 on Aug 21, 2023 9:39:30 GMT -6
Yeah I feel like a series or 2 this week would be good. If you have vet guys that have had some issues in their career like Ragnow or Vaitai that you want to hold out or guys with some minor injuries you want to give time, that makes sense. Otherwise be nice to see the key guys get some run.
Except Cominsky, he’s proved his worth beating up on guys the last 2 weeks. He can take a week off.
Post by goldenlions on Aug 21, 2023 22:40:26 GMT -6
Although I am not expecting them to play at all, but it would make more sense for them to play the starters a couple series on their only road game in the preseason and without joint practices.
I came off the first game thinking we have more depth on defense than offense at this point.
I liked what I saw from everyone except Sudfeld and Nelson
We have basically no depth at outside CB. We're one injury away from Will Harris starting again. Yikes. At least Starling Thomas has some actual, you know, speed. But who even knows ... training camp darlings come and go.
As an aside: I'm sort of okay with depth along the offensive line due to position flexibility. During the regular season, worst-case Sewell does have the flexibility and talent to slide over to LT, Vatai can play RT, with Glasgow having Guard/Center flexibility. So worst-case scenarios aren't quite as scary there.
Wide receiver is what it is. We can change up the game plan to involve LaPorta, Mitchell at TE. And Gibbs can be used in a lot of ways.
INTERIOR D-line and OUTSIDE CB are where depth is pretty freaking weak. In either scenario, we're one injury away from starting someone who might not even make most teams' active rosters.
Well said Rusty ole boy. The Will Harris scare is real. I figured he'd be cut or borderline but Moselys injury is problematic. A serviceable veteran but man he gets burned deep all day long. With Tracy Walker back maybe Kirby Joseph or Brian Branch can also fill in at cb. If you look at versatility there are some guys that could fill in before Will Harris gets his number called. No offense (pardon the pun) but he got torched bigly last year and they will go right at him. Cut him.
I suspect we may not see the starters at all in pre season
Looks like they are keeping things tight lipped to not give KC any scouting and potential match ups keys for the opener.
It's a risk not knocking some of the rust off, especially on offense
ALLEN PARK -- Dan Campbell wasn’t kidding.
The Detroit Lions head coach said Tuesday’s practice would be an intense evaluation period, and it was. The offense scrimmaged the defense for the majority of the two-hour session, with live tackling to the ground and everything. The pads were cracking, and guys like Kerby Joseph, Derrick Barnes, Levi Onwuzurike and C.J. Gardner-Johnson all received medical attention for what appeared to be minor injuries suffered during perhaps the most violent practice of the summer.
The defense dominated by a score of 63-27, racking up points for stops and turnovers.
And perhaps no one dominated more than, you guessed it, Brian Branch.
The rookie defensive back has been one of the stars of summer, and was once again among the most impactful players on the field for Detroit. There was one two-play sequence where he ran from one hash to the other to make a diving tackle on third down, then turned around on the very next play and picked off a Jared Goff pass for Kalif Raymond downfield.
Branch had at least three tackles for loss overall on the day, and just might break camp as the team’s interception leader. There is no official accounting for that, but if there’s someone who has picked off more passes, well, it’s probably C.J. Gardner-Johnson. And even the reigning NFL interception leader might not have more takeaways than the second-round pick out of Alabama.
“He’s got the instinctive side of it,” Campbell said the other day. “He’s got the football side of it. Some of it is just, OK, the next progression here is, understand where Kerby (Joseph) is going to be at, where Alex (Anzalone) is at, and how that fits to you. Now don’t take away your instincts the way you play ball, but just understand a little bit now the bigger picture, which comes in time. That’s growing.
“He’s a rookie, but he is taking off right now.”
So much so, the Lions have made some major changes to get the second-round pick into the starting lineup. Gardner-Johnson was signed to primarily play in the slot -- Branch’s position -- but has since moved to safety. That has sent Tracy Walker to the bench. And if you know anything about how good Walker is, then you understand just how good Branch must already be.
“He’s a dawg,” cornerback Emmanuel Moseley said. “He’s always been a dawg, will be a dawg.”
Let’s get to some more observations from practice:
-- The score says it all. After allowing a touchdown drive to open the day, the defense took control by reeling off 28 consecutive points for generating stops and turnovers. Gardner-Johnson and Branch both picked off passes, while Aidan Hutchinson added a sack and fourth-down stuff of Jahmyr Gibbs. The only touchdowns scored by the first-team offense came on a 1-yard plunge by David Montgomery to open the day, then an electric run of about 30 yards by Jahmyr Gibbs later on. By then, the offense trailed 28-7 and never came close to making up the deficit.
-- It’s worth noting Amon-Ra St. Brown did not practice again because of an ankle injury, and this offense looks entirely different without him on the field. St. Brown is not only Detroit’s best receiver, but accounts for roughly half the passing game. Goff relies on him so heavily, and especially in got-to-have-it situations. Without St. Brown on the field, Goff turned more to rookie tight end Sam LaPorta (who caught a team-high six passes) and veteran receiver Kalif Raymond, the latter of whom would start in the slot if St. Brown is limited during the season. And if these summer practices are any indication, let’s hope St. Brown is not limited during the season, because this offense grinds to a halt without him.
For now, the news is good. St. Brown’s injury is minor, and his availability for Week 1 is not in any question.
“Yeah, he’s doing good,” Campbell said. “He’s doing good. I mean we weren’t going to play him in Carolina (anyway), but he’s doing great.”
Jameson Williams also missed practice with a hamstring injury, while safeties Ifeatu Melifonwu and Saivion Smith did not practice after sustaining injuries on Saturday night against Jacksonville. Both defensive backs are on the roster bubble. Melifonwu has looked on the right side of things because of his growth on special teams, but injuries have always haunted him, and a stacked safety rotation could squeeze him into uncomfortable territory heading into cuts. Melifonwu did get some running in on the side with a trainer, and it’s possible we’ll see him again before cuts.
-- Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater took all the second-team reps, leaving Nate Sudfeld to wonder what his future holds heading into cuts. But Bridgwater fared no better than Goff, struggling to get things going against the backup defense. He did connect with rookie Antoine Green for a touchdown on a fourth-down crossing route, but also threw a pick to rookie safety Brandon Joseph.
-- As the Lions begin to shape their 53-man roster heading into next Tuesday’s deadline, it seems they still haven’t settled on a right guard. Halapoulivaati Vaitai and Graham Glasgow have split those reps throughout camp, and they alternated series during the scrimmage on Tuesday. Vaitai is the incumbent starter at that position, but didn’t play last year because of a back injury. Glasgow also started there during a four-year stint in Detroit from 2016-19, along with the other two interior spots. No matter how right guard shakes out, Glasgow will play center if Frank Ragnow’s balky toe acts up again. Ragnow has received regular rest in camp to protect the toe for the start of the season.
That said, its sounding like st brown is the key to the O....just hope he doesn't ever get hurt for reals
I said it last year when Amon-ra missed a game and played a couple others at much less than 100% - he completely changes the offense and Goff is a completely different QB when he's in there.
A scrimmage is just that and really cannot gauge anything from it. We don't know what schemes they were running, plays etc.
This is also an account from one writer and a intra scrimmage scoring system they developed, so hard to say the defense won. And again we don't know all variables.
A scrimmage is just that and really cannot gauge anything from it.
Same goes for preseason games.
It sounds like MC/DC doesn't want to play the starters so as to not tip off KC for week 1, not for injury concerns. I don't know...not sure why they can't just run some vanilla plays just to get some reps in.
caught the 2nd half of the lions carolina game. one thing i could see is we definately had much better talent on the field of the players fighting for roster spots. says a lot on how far we have come with the new regime. totally impressed with Gilmore. hes a keeper.
A scrimmage is just that and really cannot gauge anything from it.
Same goes for preseason games.
It sounds like MC/DC doesn't want to play the starters so as to not tip off KC for week 1, not for injury concerns. I don't know...not sure why they can't just run some vanilla plays just to get some reps in.
we've had joint practices with 2 teams where most others only did with one team. intensity is higher in joint practices. plus we did full tackling in a couple practices this week. i think we will be fine. more of keeping the OL healthy going into the KC game. i fully expect us to beat KC and not just squeak by. we will shock people. gonna be afun season. i see us losing 4 games tops. back to my beer. L8er
Kicker, no idea what they’re going to do. Patterson clearly taps out around 50. You really need more leg than that.
I think the fact that Parker-Romo didn't even play tells me they've already made the decision to go with Patterson. Probably want to sneak Parker-Romo on practice squad.
Although I am not expecting them to play at all, but it would make more sense for them to play the starters a couple series on their only road game in the preseason and without joint practices.
Lions should trade jameson williams and a 2nd rd pick to the rams for aaron donald
I'd give up the 2nd rounder. I am not giving up on Jamo yet.
at this point, if some of the youngsters do well and its time to waive one to keep williams i'd just as soon put williams on IR and make him earn a spot on the roster next year. hes been nothing but a headache.i'd waive or trade Onswirkie, however you spell it. he wont last. his back will act up again. accept the mistake and move on.
