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Notes from Thursday’s Detroit Lions minicamp session on Jared Goff, UDFAs, punt return fun, an unexpected safety standout and more
Minicamp wrapped on Thursday after three days of practice sessions at the Detroit Lions team facility in suburban Allen Park.
The mood and action was more laid back in a last-day-of-school kind of vibe, to steal a take from Jeremy Reisman of Pride of Detroit. It even ended with a sort of “field day” fun competition between the offense and defense.
Here’s what I saw and heard in Thursday’s session.
Lions minicamp notebook, Day 2: Probing the depths of the roster
Due to injuries and COVID-19 issues, a lot of rookies will be on center stage for the Lions vs. the Falcons
Coming off of a huge victory at home last Sunday, the Detroit Lions now head to Atlanta with the hopes of having their first winning streak of the season.
Due to COVID-19, the flu, and a plethora of injuries to key players, the Lions have had to rely more on their 2021 rookie class than many expected them to. This game will be no different as several first-year players are set to take on larger roles against Atlanta.
First-round pick Penei Sewell has already proven that he’s capable of holding his own against some of the league’s top pass-rushers. Luckily, he won’t be up against any of those players when he takes the field in Atlanta. The Falcons’ leading pass-rusher is Dante Fowler, who has just 4.5 sacks on the season. No other player on the team has gotten more than two sacks on opposing quarterbacks. The Lions will be relying on backup quarterback Tim Boyle, who will more than appreciate Sewell keeping a clean pocket for him on the right side of the line.
Penei Sewell is a baaaaaaaaaad man #OnePride
pic.twitter.com/WmIj32c3FS— PFF DET Lions (@PFF_Lions) November 25, 2021
Undrafted free agent Tommy Kraemer could potentially be the Lions’ starting left guard if Jonah Jackson is unable to play. Jackson, who has been the team’s starting left guard for most of the season, is listed as questionable to play as he deals with a back injury. Kraemer has started in two games this far with mixed results. His first career game was rife with penalties and pressures given up, but he turned things around last week after taking every snap on offense in the blowout win over Arizona.
Center Ryan McCollum will likely be active as he is the only backup to Evan Brown at the moment. As long as Brown stays healthy, McCollum will only take the field for field goals and extra point attempts.
Rookie running back Jermar Jefferson has had a very limited role on offense over the last few weeks as he has had to re-acclimate himself into practices after dealing with both illness and injury. Unfortunately, his playing time has been hindered even more by the emergence of Craig Reynolds, who has been exceeding any and all expectations at the running back position.
Jefferson should see some playing time but it will likely be in a limited capacity once again. The rookie has 97 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns so far this year.
It is very clear the the chemistry between fourth-round pick Amon-Ra St. Brown and starting quarterback Jared Goff has been found. Unfortunately, we’ll have to see how the rookie will do with Tim Boyle taking the reigns on offense.
Goff airs it out to St. Brown 🚀#OnePride
pic.twitter.com/5y3fGGCdI6— PFF DET Lions (@PFF_Lions) December 19, 2021
St. Brown has four catches for 18 yards when Boyle is playing quarterback, so it’s more than likely that he’ll be a go-to option against Atlanta. He and veteran Josh Reynolds will be the starting receivers for this game and the two won’t be taking too much time off on offense.
Despite showing some promise as a receiver earlier in the season, Brock Wright had a rough day against the Cardinals last Sunday. The rookie blocking tight end committed two penalties and failed to catch the one pass that came his way.
Luckily, fellow undrafted rookie Shane Zylstra has been activated from the practice squad once again and can take over the receiving duties at the tight end position and letting Wright revert back to his role as a blocker. Zylstra has three receptions for 34 yards on the 69 offensive snaps he’s taken thus far.
One of the bigger mysteries of this season is why these two defensive rookies aren’t getting more playing time.
Onwuzurike has flashed some promise at defensive end and has 29 tackles and a sack to his name so far. The issue is that he has been on the field for less than a third of the Lions’ defensive snaps. He has been dealing with minor injuries for a majority of the year, so maybe the coaching staff is just trying to ensure the rookie is healthy for a bigger role next season.
Alim McNeill has began to unseat John Penisini as Detroit’s starting nose tackle but the two are still essentially sharing their reps. McNeill has all the physical traits needed to be a force against the run, but just needs a little more time to develop into that role. Expect him to put some pressure on the Falcons’ struggling interior offensive line in this matchup.
The Lions have seen more successes than usual with their linebackers this season. At inside linebacker, Alex Anzalone had been looking like a great free-agent signing and Jalen Reeves-Maybin has emerged into a full-time starter. Unfortunately for Detroit, Anzalone’s season is over after suffering an injury last week and Reeves-Maybin is questionable to play.
This means that rookie linebacker Derrick Barnes will be helming the defense as the starting inside linebacker against Atlanta. Barnes showed plenty of potential throughout training camp and the preseason, but has reminded us that he is still a rookie with much to learn as his role has increased throughout the season.
His biggest struggles have been when he has had to drop into coverage, which doesn’t bode well when he’s set to face off against dual-threat running back and wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson.
Called up from the practice squad, Tavante Beckett could see the field for the first time in his career. He’ll be a reserve inside linebacker in case any more injuries afflict that position group.
No position group on this team has had more changes to personnel than the defensive backs. Down their top three cornerbacks, the Lions will now rely on Ifeatu Melifonwu to start opposite of safety-turned-cornerback Will Harris.
Melifonwu has a string of bad luck to begin his career. The rookie was placed on injured reserve after sustaining an injury in week 2. When he was activated from injured reserve, he immediately was placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list and missed even more time. He’ll have a lot of rust to shake off, but this will also be a great opportunity to evaluate the young cornerback.
AJ Parker returned from injured reserve and is back to being the Lions’ starting nickel defender. The undrafted rookie has been exceptional in that role and should have an easy time against the Falcons, whose receiving corps has been depleted due to injuries.
Mark Gilbert has also just been activated from Reserve/COVID-19 and should be the next man up at cornerback if Melifonwu or Harris get hurt. Gilbert showed plenty of promise against Pittsburgh earlier this season when he forced a fumble on Diontae Johnson. If it comes to it, he’ll be a reliable replacement in the secondary.
Brady Breeze saw some meaningful reps on defense last week after being claimed off of waivers from Tennessee. As a reserve free safety, he likely won’t be playing much in this game with Tracy Walker back in the lineup. Expect Breeze to be a core special teamer if he’s active at all.
The Detroit Lions found a diamond in the rough by signing Patterson off of New England’s practice squad. After having gone through six kickers over the course of training camp, preseason, and regular season, they have finally found a reliable option in this undrafted rookie.
Patterson has yet to miss a kick on his fifteen total field goal and extra point attempts. Hopefully he finds more of the same successes against Atlanta.
Scouting report on new Lions rookie S Brady Breeze, who the team claimed off waivers from the Titans on Monday
There is a new safety in Detroit after the Lions claimed Brady Breeze off waivers from the Tennessee Titans this week. Breeze joins the Lions after being waived by the Titans in the middle of his rookie season having played sparingly in Nashville.
Aside from the cool alliterative name, Breeze brings some youthful promise to the Lions. He was a sixth-round draft pick out of Oregon in the 2021 NFL draft, a former teammate of Lions first-rounder Penei Sewell.
Like Sewell, Breeze opted out of the 2020 college season for the Ducks. His last college game was a great one, however. Breeze earned the Rose Bowl MVP against Wisconsin for his 11-tackle performance that also included a forced fumble and recovery for a touchdown. It was his third defensive score of the season, showing an opportunistic bent to his game.
The effort and playing style from Breeze is one of a kneecap biter. He goes maximum effort on every snap and doesn’t shy away from contact or hitting. The instincts in the run game are readily evident. Breeze is good at attacking downhill from a high safety spot, especially against interior runs. He’s very adept at filling the proper hole at the right time.
He will hit in coverage and Breeze has some pop behind his pads. He plays bigger than his 6-foot, 196-pound frame would suggest. That style of play and physicality is also present in special teams duty. Breeze played exclusively on punt and kick teams with the Titans. Even in the preseason, Breeze couldn’t get on the field on defense.
In coverage, it’s understandable why the Titans let him go. Even at Oregon, the speed of the passing game often moved a little too fast for Breeze. He’s an average overall athlete but doesn’t have great play speed or closing burst. The chase-down speed just isn’t there.
One area where he really struggled in college was in changing directions on the fly. If his hips turned outside and he had to recover inside, Breeze was in a lot of trouble.
In Detroit, expect him to start out playing the same as he did with the Titans: special teams. If he can’t shoehorn his way into the coverage and return units quickly, Breeze might not be in Detroit for long. It’s a real stretch to see the coverage issues and limited on-field play speed affording Breeze much of a chance to play on defense, even in the Lions’ injury-ravaged secondary.
Breeze was waived by the Titans on Saturday and was claimed by the Lions on Monday.
Former Tennessee Titans 2021 sixth-round pick and defensive back, Brady Breeze, has found himself a new home with the Detroit Lions.
After being waived by the Titans on Saturday to make room for the activation of players off Injured Reserve, Breeze was claimed by Detroit off waivers on Monday. He is the second player from Tennessee to be claimed by the Lions after wide receiver Josh Reynolds was claimed off waivers last month.
Breeze, who has dealt with injury and spent time between the Titans’ practice squad and active roster, appeared in five games for the Tennessee but played only on special teams.
The move by the Lions comes on the heels of the team losing rookie cornerback Jerry Jacobs, who tore his ACL and was placed on Injured Reserve.
#Lions announce roster moves:
Awarded S Brady Breeze via waivers from Tennessee.
Placed CB Jerry Jacobs on Reserve/Injured.
Placed CB Corey Ballentine on Practice Squad Reserve/COVID-19.
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) December 13, 2021
Of Tennessee’s eight 2021 picks, Breeze is the only one no longer with the team. Four are currently on the active roster (Dillon Radunz, Elijah Molden, Dez Fitzpatrick, Racey McMath), while three others are on IR (Caleb Farley, Rashad Weaver and Monty Rice).
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The Lions claim rookie S Brady Breeze off waivers from the Titans and place CB Jerry Jacobs on IR
The Detroit Lions added a rookie safety to the team on Monday. Detroit claimed former Tennessee Titan S Brady Breeze.
Breeze was a sixth-round selection, the 215th pick in the 2021 NFL draft out of Oregon. He had only played on special teams in five games for the AFC South-leading Titans. Tennessee waived him on Saturday and the Lions claimed him by virtue of having the top spot on the waiver wire.
Detroit had an opening after placing rookie CB Jerry Jacobs on injured reserve. Jacobs tore the ACL in his knee early in Sunday’s loss to the Denver Broncos.
CB Corey Ballentine went from playing 14 reps on special teams for the Lions on Sunday to the practice squad reserve/COVID-19 list on Monday. Ballentine was one of the seven players elevated from the practice squad to help fill in for the Lions who were out with COVID-19. Now he’s joined them after reverting back to the practice squad. Per the NFL’s transaction wire, it was the result of a positive test.
The move to waive Johnny Townsend likely means Brett Kern is nearing his return.
The Tennessee Titans made four roster moves on Tuesday, including placing both wide receiver Cameron Batson and cornerback Caleb Farley on Injured Reserve.
In addition, the team has activated safety and 2021 sixth-round pick Brady Breeze from the list, while also waiving punter Johnny Townsend.
Early Tuesday morning, it was reported that Batson and Farley had suffered torn ACLs, ending their respective seasons. The injury to Farley is particularly rough, as it leaves Tennessee even thinner at corner.
The move to waive Townsend likely means that punter Brett Kern is nearing his return. Kern had missed two games with a groin injury, and was out for Week 6 after being placed on the COVID-19 list.
The activation of Breeze gives the Titans a much-needed body in the secondary, although it doesn’t help with their depleted cornerbacks room.
On Tuesday, head coach Mike Vrabel said he expects the team will look at cornerbacks Chris Jones and Briean Boddy-Calhoun, both of whom are on the practice squad. However, the team should also be looking at the trade market ahead of the deadline, which comes on Nov. 2.
#Titans' Vrabel: CBs Chris Jones and Briean Boddy-Calhoun (both on practice squad) will get looks at this week, possible activation.
— John Glennon (@glennonsports) October 19, 2021
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It remains to be seen if Johnson or Breeze will be ready to play in Week 4, though.
The Tennessee Titans announced three moves on Wednesday morning, two of which involve wide receiver Marcus Johnson and 2021 sixth-round pick and safety, Brady Breeze.
Johnson and Breeze have been moved to the “Designated for Return from Injured Reserve” list, which opens up the 21-day window for both to return to practice and eventually be activated off IR. Neither player will count against the 53-man roster until activated, though.
Also, the Titans signed defensive lineman Abdullah Anderson to the practice squad. Anderson appeared in six games with the Chicago Bears in 2019, and one game with the Minnesota Vikings in 2020.
The moves with Johnson and Breeze come as the Titans are dealing with injuries at both positions.
At safety, the Titans will be without Amani Hooker for at least two more weeks after he was placed on IR ahead of the Week 3 game. In Hooker’s place, the Titans first started safety Bradley McDougald in Week 2, but released him after the game.
He was replaced by safety Dane Cruikshank in the latter parts of that game, and then Cruikshank took over the starting job in Week 3 and played well.
At wide receiver, the statuses of both A.J. Brown and Julio Jones are up in the air for this Sunday, as Brown is dealing with a strained hamstring and Jones is getting treatment for a leg injury.
It remains to be seen if either Johnson or Breeze will be ready in time for the Week 4 contest against the Jets, but if so both would provide a nice boost to Tennessee’s depth at both positions.
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It was not a good day for Titans 2021 sixth-round pick and safety, Brady Breeze.
Tennessee Titans 2021 sixth-round pick and safety Brady Breeze did not have a good day during the team’s seventh practice of training camp on Wednesday.
While we don’t have video, Ben Arthur of the Tennessean notes that Breeze was kicked out of practice for a hit to the head on fellow rookie and wide receiver, Dez Fitzpatrick.
“Titans practice over. Safety Brady Breeze was kicked out of practice near the end for a hit to the head on Dez Fitzpatrick in the end zone,” Arthur wrote on Twitter.
Breeze has been mostly quiet so far in training camp, and we did not include him in our latest 53-man roster projection with the Titans having a crowded situation for the backup safety roles. His already uphill climb just got steeper.
The Carolina Panthers had a similar situation occur in their training camp on Tuesday, when Safety J.T. Ibe hit wide receiver Keith Kirkwood while in the air. Ibe was cut almost immediately.
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What experts were saying about Titans safety Brady Breeze before the 2021 NFL draft.
When the Tennessee Titans drafted safety Brady Breeze in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL draft (No. 215 overall), the common response among fans and media was, “who?”
Putting his awesome name aside for a second, Breeze wasn’t on the radar of many out there, and the fact that he’s a safety when the team didn’t really need another added to the confusion of the pick.
But the more we learned about Breeze and his aggressive, hard-hitting style, the more we like him and understand where the Titans were going with the selection.
Not only does he give maximum effort and play like his hair is on fire on every snap, he also excels on special teams, where he was an ace at Oregon.
While we think he has some traits that could lead to him making an impact on defense down the line, it’s clear from pre-draft scouting reports that experts viewed Breeze as a core special teamer more than anything else.
Brady Breeze is an intriguing sixth-round pick who could become more than a special teams ace.
The Tennessee Titans added a safety and special teams ace in the sixth round of the 2021 NFL draft when they selected Oregon product Brady Breeze at No. 215 overall, their last pick of the three-day event.
With the Titans having a solid group of safeties already, Breeze will have a tough time not only making the roster, but earning snaps on defense in 2021. However, he still has a better chance to stick than most sixth-round picks.
That’s because of Breeze’s prowess on special teams, an area he excelled at during his days at Oregon. That was likely the biggest reason the Titans ultimately drafted the 2020 Rose Bowl Defensive MVP.
But when you watch 6-foot, 196-pound safety on tape, you see an intriguing player who is workman-like and gives maximum effort, while playing aggressively and hitting hard.
Those are the kinds of traits that teams love and ones that could help Breeze develop into solid in-the-box safety down the line. For now, he’ll have to make his hay through special teams.
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