OTAs – Syndication Server

Lions lose an OTA session for violating the NFLPA’s on-field contact rules

The Detroit Lions lose an OTA session for violating the NFLPA’s on-field contact rules during a recent OTA session

The Detroit Lions have been penalized by the NFL and the player’s union for violating the collectively bargained rules against on-field contact during a recent OTA session. As a result, the Lions have been forced to forfeit one of the remaining days of OTAs scheduled for the coming week.

In a statement from the Lions, the team acknowledged the violation. Monday’s scheduled OTA session has been forfeited, per the release.

“On Friday evening the organization was made aware by the NFL and NFLPA that Organized Team Activities (OTA) practices held the week of May 27 violated player work rules pertaining to on-field physical contact pursuant to the Collective Bargaining Agreement. As a result, the team’s OTA practice scheduled for Monday, June 10 has been forfeited. We take very seriously the rules set forth within the NFL’s Offseason Program and have worked to conduct our practices accordingly. We will continue to be vigilant with our practices moving forward.”

The May 27th OTA session referenced as the date of the violation was a practice that was not open to the media.

Watch: Video notebook recap of Lions OTAs

Watch: Video notebook recap of Lions OTAs from Lions Wire’s Jeff Risdon

Thursday afternoon was a Lions OTA session open to the media. I made the trip to Allen Park to take in the action in the voluntary practice, the final scheduled OTA of the week.

Via the Detroit Lions Podcast, I recorded a video breaking down more of what I saw and heard during the OTA session.

Check out all these top photos from Lions OTAs

The Detroit Lions held their fifth OTA session of the offseason on Thursday, May 30th. It was an open practice to the media, which means we were able to get some fresh shots of all the action.

It was a beautiful afternoon in Allen Park for the players and coaches to go through a practice session. Even with several regular players sitting out the voluntary OTA session, there was still quite a bit of action.

Here are some of the top shots captured by the professional photographers at the Lions training facility.

Brodric Martin ‘a lot more ready’ mentally for his second Lions season

Lions DT Brodric Martin feels “a lot more ready” mentally to contribute in his second season in Detroit

Brodric Martin didn’t play much as a rookie in 2023. Despite being a third-round pick by the Lions out of Western Kentucky, Martin was a healthy scratch for far more games than he played, even though Detroit’s defensive line lacked depth and oomph.

That should change in 2024 thanks to a changed Martin. He’s visibly quite slimmer in the neck, shoulders and chest, looking more like an NFL athlete than just a very large human being.

After Thursday’s OTA session in Detroit, Martin talked to the media about the changes and progress he’s made after his rookie campaign.

“What I did was lose some fat and gain back some of that muscle,” Martin summarized, noting he paid more attention to his diet.

Yet the biggest progress Martin acknowledges making is in his mindset.

“In my mind I wanted to play but I wasn’t ready,” a candid Martin admitted. “I feel a lot more ready now.”

In a later question, Martin was asked where his game has improved the most.

“I’d say the most is probably my mind,” Martin said pensively. “It’s all slowed down for me a lot more. I understand the game a lot more.”

Martin factors prominently into a defensive line rotation behind starters Alim McNeill and newcomer D.J. Reader, who has quickly made quite a professional impression on Martin. He noted that Reader offered him unsolicited tips after taking it upon himself to watch all of Martin’s film on his own.

Ben Johnson gives a great explanation on why he didn’t leave the Lions for head coaching opportunities

Lions OC Ben Johnson gives a great explanation on why he didn’t leave Detroit for head coaching opportunities on other teams

Many NFL analysts and insiders strongly believed Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson would be a head coach on another team right now. Johnson has certainly had opportunities, with Carolina and Washington this past offseason and also with the Panthers and Texans, and perhaps the Colts, a year earlier.

Yet Johnson has turned all the advances from other teams aside, choosing instead to run the Detroit offense under head coach Dan Campbell. It’s a conscious choice by Johnson to stay with the Lions, one that not a lot of folks outside of the team really understand.

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On Thursday, Johnson helped explain his reasoning behind eschewing several head coaching opportunities and remaining the OC in Detroit. Speaking before Thursday’s OTA session, Johnson framed his desire to stay with an interesting perspective.

“Something that really resonates with me is – OK, eight openings this past year. What would you set the over/under in three years for how many still have jobs?” Johnson questioned. “I would put the over/under at four and a half. I would say there’s a good chance that five of them are out of jobs in three years. When I look at it from that perspective, if I get the opportunity to go down that road, it’s about how do I get to that second contract? How do I set myself up that the stars need to align?”

Johnson, a 38-year-old father of young children, continued,

“I’m not going to do it just to do it. I love what I’m doing right now. Love it. I love where I’m at, my family loves where we’re at, I love the people that we’re doing it with, and so I’m not willing to go down the other path yet unless I feel really good about how it’s going to unfold.”

That vision for how it might unfold in Washington or Carolina, where ownership issues have been prevalent in recent times, is not something every coaching candidate sees. Or, perhaps more correctly, wants to see. Johnson is secure enough in his current role and his status to not ignore potential red flags that flap in the breeze with other organizations courting him to leave a place he loves.

Or, as Johnson stated,

“That’s what (the NFL) is about. When you get opportunities to take care of yourself, you have to make sure you keep the big picture in mind, and that’s what I’ve tried to do, what’s right for me and my family. That’s really what it came down to for us.”

Michael Badgley puts his best leg forward in Lions OTAs

Badgley was money on several long FG attempts in Thursday’s practice, including a 61-yarder that had room to spare

Michael Badgley is back as the Detroit Lions kicker. That’s a status that many fans aren’t happy about, even after Badgley was perfect on field goals in his four regular-season games and three postseason games in 2023.

Badgley shut down any questions about his leg strength with a boomer of a day at Lions OTAs on Thursday. On a cloudless 70-degree day with a light cross breeze, Badgley nailed eight attempts in a row from at least 53 yards. He concluded with a 61-yard success from the right hash mark that would have been good from at least 2-3 more yards.

The day didn’t start great for Badgley. He missed his first attempt from 48 yards wide right, and also yanked a 50-yarder to almost the exact same spot–about 3 ball lengths wide right. After that, Badgley did not miss on his final 18 (by my count) attempts from ranges of 45 and beyond.

Undrafted rookie James Turner wasn’t as successful, though he did show a very strong leg in drilling a 55-yarder right down the middle. He missed two of three at one point, all from 48-52 yards.

It’s worth noting the long snapper battle has some heat. Veteran Scott Daly had poor snaps on one of Badgley’s misses, and holder Jack Fox really had to work on a couple other ones to get it set. UDFA Hogan Hatten didn’t get many reps but was perfect on his FG snaps.

Could Tre’Quan Smith be the hidden depth answer for the Lions at WR?

Unheralded veteran WR Tre’Quan Smith will get a chance to prove himself in Detroit Lions OTAs and minicamp of providing unexpected depth

One of the biggest uncertainties facing the Detroit Lions as the second week of OTAs commences is the depth at wide receiver. There’s a lot of unease amongst the Lions fan base about the wideouts after Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams and Kalif Raymond. Heck, there are many fans who have considerable doubts about Jamo, Raymond and fellow returnee Donovan Peoples-Jones as an entire group.

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Detroit opted to avoid chasing higher-profile wide receivers in free agency. They also eschewed drafting a wideout in the 2024 NFL Draft despite the class being widely perceived as very deep and very good.

However, the Lions did quietly sign an experienced wide receiver this offseason. One with 35 career starts and a two-TD game against Detroit on his NFL résumé, no less:

Tre’Quan Smith.

Now wearing No. 10 for the Lions, Smith spent five seasons (2018-2022) in New Orleans as a sometimes-starter who played over 66 percent of offensive snaps in his first four seasons. Smith was a third-round pick by the Saints in 2018 out of UCF after an impressive career as a deep threat with some savvy to his route-running.

Smith’s career with the Saints never quite panned out, though he did catch 131 passes in five seasons, scoring 18 touchdowns. By way of comparison, Smith caught a higher percentage of targets for more total yards, yards per reception and double the touchdowns than the man he’s hoping to replace in Detroit, Josh Reynolds, did in his first five years in the NFL (2017-2021).

To say he didn’t work out well in New Orleans is an understatement; check out this over-the-top celebration of Smith’s release from a Louisiana sports radio show. There were untimely drops, minor injury issues, missed blocking assignments, avoidable penalties and a general unreliability that Lions fans of a certain age might associate (outside of one great year) with Germaine Crowell.

Smith got a shot at redemption with the Denver Broncos in 2023 but managed just 10 offensive snaps while spending almost all year on the practice squad.

It’s a low-risk shot for the Lions to extend one last chance to Smith, who is very familiar for coach Dan Campbell from his Saints days. Smith is in Detroit on a future/reserve contract, the same basic status as an undrafted rookie — and a lesser commitment from the team than UDFA Isaiah Williams. Smith has no appreciable experience playing special teams, a general requisite for the bottom of the roster players.

It might amount to nothing. It wouldn’t surprise many, certainly none in Saints land, if Smith doesn’t even make it to training camp in July. But don’t write Tre’Quan Smith off just yet. If he’s got anything left to offer, Smith will have ample opportunity to show it over the upcoming OTAs and minicamp at a position where the Lions could really use an unexpected jolt of fresh optimism.

Lions safety CJ Moore admits ‘careless mistake’, ready to move on from his gambling suspension

Lions safety CJ Moore admits ‘careless mistake’, ready to move on from his gambling suspension that cost him the 2023 season

After working hard to establish himself as one of the NFL’s top special teams players, Lions safety CJ Moore lost an unnecessary gamble that nearly cost him his career. The NFL suspended Moore, along with several other Lions, indefinitely last spring for violating the league’s gambling policy. Detroit cut Moore as a result.

Moore is now back with the Lions. After being reinstated earlier this offseason, the Lions re-signed Moore after the 2024 NFL Draft to return to his reserve safety role and special teams prowess.

While Moore refused to give specific details about his gambling, he acknowledged his mistakes and owned responsibility for costing himself a valuable season.

“I knew the rules, just like I said, just being immature, just gambling, losing control of being aware of exactly what I was doing,” he said. “So just a careless mistake.”

Moore wants to help any teammates who might fall prey to the same temptation he did, one which cost him a year of his career.

“If I can help and tell these guys and encourage them. Don’t even gamble at all, that’s my word to them,” Moore said after Thursday’s OTA session.

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Carlton Davis ‘really excited’ for the Lions chances at a Super Bowl

New Detroit CB Carlton Davis ‘really excited’ for the Lions chances at a Super Bowl

Lions cornerback Carlton Davis already has climbed the Super Bowl mountain in the NFL. Davis won a championship as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers back in 2020 as a starting outside cornerback.

Acquired this offseason from the Bucs for a third-round pick, Davis is hoping to help Detroit accomplish the same lofty goal. After his first OTA session with the Lions that was open to the media, Davis shared his optimism that this Detroit team can get the job done.

“Really excited about the personnel, the coaches, the environment,” Davis stated. “I haven’t been this excited since 2020 when we (his Buccaneers team) won the Super Bowl. Really competitive environment.”

After playing the Lions twice last year, including in the NFC divisional round game, Davis definitely had respect for Detroit and what head coach Dan Campbell is building.

“Knowing the grit that they had, even when we played them in the playoffs — both times actually —it was like, you can tell it was a different Detroit team. It’s something to really be excited about, knowing that this team has longed for a Super Bowl for so long and we have a chance to go this year.”

Davis will be counted on for leadership in a young secondary, and his considerable playoff success is a great addition to the Lions lineup.

A ‘matured’ Jameson Williams ready to take on bigger role in Lions offense

A ‘matured’ Jameson Williams ready to take on bigger role in Lions offense in his third year

When Lions head coach Dan Campbell praised wide receiver Jameson Williams as the most improved player at this week’s OTA sessions, it raised some eyebrows. One of those eyebrows belongs to Williams himself.

The third-year wideout was appreciative of Campbell’s words. Williams has been working hard to earn it after two star-crossed seasons.

“I think I’ve matured a lot,” Williams told reporters after Thursday’s practice. “Coming in the league, I still had some childish ways. Wanted to do what I wanted to do, and how I wanted to do it. Sometimes you got to listen, and just be on the right track. Follow the right path, and you’ll be down the right way.”

Williams wasn’t always the most focused or attentive player in practices. That has changed for the better, at least on the one day of OTAs open to the media.

“I’ve been working. I’ve been putting in work ever since the season ended,” Williams added.

The work is needed. Williams has caught just 25 passes for 395 yards and three TDs in 18 games across his first two seasons. Depending on the source, “Jamo” has dropped either four or five of the 51 total targets thrown his way. That’s nowhere near the return expected on the No. 12 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft.

Williams appears to be dedicated to making a big jump in 2024. The opportunity for him to take over the No. 2 wideout role from Josh Reynolds (now in Denver) is wide open. If Williams can get wide open for Jared Goff and take advantage of his increased opportunities, the Lions offense just got quite a bit better.