Tag: Isaiah Buggs

Isaiah Buggs benched for the Lions opener, downplays his social media controversy

Nose tackle Isaiah Buggs says he’s benched for the Lions opener, and also downplays his weekend social media controversy

Lions nose tackle Isaiah Buggs was the focus of attention on Monday. As is often the case when a nose tackle is prominent, it’s not a positive for the big man.

Buggs acknowledged that he’s been benched by head coach Dan Campbell for the Week 1 opener in Kansas City. It has nothing to do with the injury that he suffered in the preseason finale against the Giants, which he labeled as simply “just got shook up.” And it also is unrelated to the illness that kept him out of Saturday’s practice session, when he was the only Lions player not a participant in the period open to the media.

“I’m going to be straightforward with it, because they were straightforward with me with that,” Buggs declared. “And as of right now, I will not be playing.”

He added,

“I didn’t know that. It was a surprise to me, actually. That’s why I say — you don’t always know everything.”

Considered a locker room pillar and fresh off receiving a nice two-year contract earlier this offseason, it’s an unusual decision. Buggs is the projected starter at DT along with Alim McNeill.

“You thinking they’re all in with you, and then, ‘Boom.’ With a snap of your finger, it’s like that. Like I said, I’ve always been a team player, I’ve always been a role player. Whatever they have for me, that’s what I’m going to do.”

The Lions have Benito Jones and third-round rookie Brodric Martin to play the nose in Buggs’ place. Levi Onwuzurike can also fill in at DT alongside McNeill, who can play any spot on the interior.

Buggs also downplayed the ambiguously ominous social media posts that sent Lions fans agog over the weekend.

“It’s nothing to address, to be honest,” Buggs said. “It’s nothing to address. Like I say, things change, relationships change. There’s nothing to address, honestly,” Buggs said. “I’m just saying in life, period. It’s nothing dealing with football. It’s nothing dealing with here (the Lions). I’m just saying, so I don’t want anybody to take that context and run with it. But at the same time, relationships do change. That’s all I’m going to say, it’s nothing else to say about that.”

Lions only had 1 player missing from Saturday’s practice

Nose tackle Isaiah Buggs was the only player on the Detroit Lions active roster to miss practice on Saturday

Saturday’s practice session at the Detroit Lions training facility in Allen Park saw nearly a full house of participants on the field. Only one Lions player was not spotted in action in the period of practice open to reporters.

Nose tackle Isaiah Buggs did not practice in the rare Saturday session, a timing necessitated by the Thursday night opener in Kansas City. Buggs was not mentioned with any injury beyond a below-the-belt shot he took in the preseason finale against the Carolina Panthers. While he did not return to that game eight days before Saturday’s practice, he’s not shown any signs of lingering issues.

The Lions have some depth behind Buggs in Benito Jones and third-round rookie Brodric Martin as interior space-eaters. Neither offers the play-to-play consistency or run-gap responsibility of Buggs, however.

On a positive front, Ifeatu Melifonwu was on the field. The oft-injured DB missed the preseason finale and had sat out recent practices with a left thigh/quad issue.

The first official injury report comes out on Monday.

2023 NFL draft Lions film review: Western Kentucky DL Brodric Martin provides much needed help on the interior

Lions Wire’s Russell Brown breaks down the film from 3rd round pick Brodric Martin, a nose tackle from Western Kentucky

As the 3rd Round of the 2023 NFL Draft was coming to a close, it felt like the Detroit Lions were done for the night. It felt as if they were going to walk away with Hendon Hooker, Sam LaPorta and Brian Branch to make day two of the draft a success.

Shockingly, the Lions moved up to the 96th overall pick and selected Western Kentucky defensive lineman Brodric Martin. The redshirt Senior defensive lineman stands 6-foot-5 and 337 pounds. While he didn’t get an invite to the Scouting Combine, he did perform at the Western Kentucky pro day. Here’s his results from that pro day:

  • 40-Yard Dash: 5.36
  • 3-Cone Drill: 8.16
  • Shuttle: 4.94
  • Vertical Jump: 25″
  • Broad Jump: 8’4″

Not overly explosive or fast but when you put on the tape, you can see a physical defender with a motor that runs hot. Prior to playing for Western Kentucky, he played at North Alabama. After 25 games there, he transferred to the Hilltoppers where he played 28 games. Let’s dive into the film and breakdown what Martin does well and where he fits in Detroit!

Active hands and active feet 

Through the two games that I watched of Brodric Martin in the last 12 hours, it immediately stood out how he’s always got his eyes locked into the backfield. Whether it’s the quarterback or the running back, he’s searching to find a way to get back there. Due to his size, it’s difficult to move him so he’s able to maintain his gap when battling 1-on-1 against a guard or center.

Looking at the play above, you’ll see Martin aligned as a zero-shade (outside shoulder of the center). As the ball is snapped, he shrugs off the center before working his way to the guard. In the process, watch his feet move while he keeps his head up to search for the football. As the quarterback takes the designed run up the middle, you’ll see Martin quickly redirect to the quarterback to help with the tackle.

Length and power to fight pressure with pressure 

As an interior defensive lineman, it’s important to have the ability to squeeze blocks down. To accomplish this, you’ll need to create separation and fight pressure with pressure. For Martin, he saw a significant increase in total snaps played in 2022 compared to prior years. Last season, he had 500 total snaps (per PFF) played on defense and that’s well over 200+ snaps from his first season at Western Kentucky.

Watch the play above and you’ll see Martin aligned in the A-gap. As the left guard steps down, Martin does a great job staying square and uses his 34 3/8″ arms to create separation. In the process, he keeps his pad level low while using his strength to drive the guard into the small opening.

Also, the Hilltoppers linebacker (#1) does great job meeting the pulling tackle into the hole to make the tackle. It helps with Martin playing in front of that linebacker as he eats up space and drives the opposition into the hole to make rushing lanes smaller.

Overall Projection 

Going into the 2023 NFL Draft, it was evident that the Detroit Lions needed to address the interior of their defensive line. It’s been nice to see Alim McNeil and Isaiah Buggs carve out roles there, but they needed more. Most importantly, they needed size. Detroit get that by selecting Brodric Martin from Western Kentucky.

His massive frame and overall strength is going to be tough to beat in the A and B-gaps. Per PFF, Martin played all over the defensive line for the Hilltoppers. He had 189 snaps aligned as a nose tackle and over 200 snaps aligned as a 4i-technique against both left and right tackles.

When watching Martin, I loved his motor. It consistently runs hot and he chases down offensive players on a consistent basis. At 337 pounds, his weight will have to be monitored, but he should provide an impact as a rotational player on early downs. There are times that he struggles against double teams and there are times that he raises his pad level when searching for the backfield. He’s an older player that will be 24 years old next month, but he adds much-needed size and depth to the Lions’ interior.

Lions young core players earned sizeable performance based bonuses

Several of the Detroit Lions young core earned sizable performance-based bonuses, and the trend should continue heading into the future

The Detroit Lions saw major contributions from their late-round rookies and cost-effective free agents last year, and they are being compensated through their high efforts. Through the “performance-based pool” from the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement, a $10.5 million pool is rewarded to players on low-cost contracts, and several Lions earned a piece of the bonus pool.

In all, 76 players from the Lions earned a bonus, with Kerby Joseph leading the group with a $523,538 bonus, almost topping his base salary of $705,000 from last year. Here is a list of the top ten amounts among the Lions players.

Kerby Joseph 1,408 snaps $523,538
Brock Wright 762 $451,678
Jonah Jackson 918 $441,996
Isaiah Buggs 758 $434,816
Amon-Ra St. Brown 835 $421,923
Malcolm Rodriguez 685 $389,914
Alim McNeill 784 $366,610
Jerry Jacobs 619 $366,440
DeShon Elliott 889 $355,978
John Cominsky 610 $327,154

Even though none of the Lions landed in the Top 25 of players who received from the performance-bonus pool, it is indicative of the contributions the Lions received from their late-round draftees and their low-end free agents. The Lions will lean on several of these players as core contributors this upcoming season.

On offense, Jackson is the unsung hero on the offensive line and has been one of the more reliable players for the Lions. Wright became a solid red-zone target for Jared Goff while providing key run and pass blocking. In addition, St. Brown is earning a reputation as one of the best receivers in the league.

On defense, with their rookie year under their belt, Joseph and Rodriguez will look to take the next step forward and elevate their game in their respective positions. Buggs and Cominsky earned new contracts from Detroit after their rebound seasons. McNeill is a force to be reckoned with in the middle of the defensive line. Jacobs has turned from a UDFA to one of the better cornerbacks for the Lions. Eliott earned a new contract with the Miami Dolphins, but he was a nice addition, especially after Tracy Walker went down.

I would look to see this trend continue as General Manager Brad Holmes looks to have an eye for talent, either in the draft or free agency. He has made quite a few moves in this free agency that have been well received and looks to be plugging holes where they needed to be plugged. With two first-round picks in the upcoming draft, the possibilities are endless on what the Lions can do.

Isaiah Buggs ‘always wanted to be back’ with the Lions

Isaiah Buggs is a player Detroit Lions wants to continue to build with, and the feelings were mutual as Buggs always wanted to be back

The Detroit Lions have laid out the foundation of the culture they wanted to establish, and it is easy to see its impact on the franchise. The Lions filled their clubhouse with strong leaders to spread that message and hold everyone accountable, and it showed with their performance on the field. In addition, the organization has shown they take care of their own, and they did such that by re-signing one of their defensive leaders Isaiah Buggs to a two-year contract.

Buggs was at the forefront of the defense and a vocal leader to lead the charge with his high-powered energy that would make you want to run through a brick wall. Even though he did not light up the stat sheet, he was a monster up front and paved the way for others to make the plays. He knew what his job was, and he did it with perfection.

It would have been interesting to see what kind of market Buggs would have had, but he was not interested in going anywhere else because he could see what the Lions were doing and wants to help achieve that elusive success.

“I‘m a firm believer being part of something that’s trying to be built here. We’re going to build something great here, and I want to be a part of it when it happens. I didn’t want to go into free agency wondering about where I was going to be, where I was going to end up. When Detroit called me and they said, ‘We want you back,’ I wanted to be back. I always wanted to be back, and I’m glad we made that happen.”

Buggs was a very late addition last season, signing with the Lions a week before training camp, but that didn’t stop him from showing his hard work and dedication to make a difference for a franchise that feel at home with.

“Sometimes it’s better to have a fresh start. Me, when I got drafted with the Steelers, my career was up and down until I finally found a place where I can call home. When you find a place that you can call home, you feel more comfortable. And when you get comfortable, you do more things.”

Buggs is a very easy player to root for, and his contributions go more than tackles on the field. He is a true difference maker on and off the field and provided a strong outlet to young defensive players like Aidan Hutchinson, Alim McNeill, and Josh Paschal last year. The confidence is growing in Detroit, and Buggs is now part of that strong nucleus core to continue the upward trajectory.

“Just being around a great group of guys, I really felt at home here. And these coaches, man, they’re outstanding coaches. They really believe in you and really put you in the best situation to win. That was my main thing, finding a place where I can fit in, I can be a leader and I can just do what’s asked and buy in. Detroit was that place for me.”

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Detroit Lions re-sign former Alabama DL Isaiah Buggs to two-year deal

The Detroit Lions and Isaiah Buggs agreed to terms on a two-year deal worth $6-million dollars on Monday. He joined the Lions in 2022.

The Detroit Lions agreed to a two-year deal with former Alabama defensive lineman Isaiah Buggs on Monday. According to Tom Pelissero, the deal is worth $6-million and will keep Buggs in Detroit for the next two years.

Buggs transferred to Alabama by way of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. In two seasons in Tuscaloosa, he tallied 103 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss, and 11 sacks.

In 2019, Buggs was drafted in the sixth round by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He spent three seasons with the Steelers, he recorded 31 tackles.

After his third season, he signed with the Detroit Lions. In 2022, Buggs added 45 tackles and one sack. He started in 13 games for the Lions.

His role will likely increase moving forward. He played his best ball toward the end of the season. It will be interesting to see how he performs in 2023-2024 with one of the league’s most improved teams.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Buggs’ professional career as well as other former Alabama players in the NFL.

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Lions re-sign DT Isaiah Buggs to a 2-year deal

The Detroit Lions re-sign DT Isaiah Buggs to a 2-year deal just before free agency begins

Cross off one of the Detroit Lions’ own free agents. The Lions and defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs have agreed on a new two-year contract that will keep the starting nose tackle in Detroit through 2024.

Buggs started 13 games for the Lions in 2022 after coming over from the Pittsburgh Steelers. After a slow start with his new team, Buggs really came on during Detroit’s 8-2 surge to finish the season. The 26-year-old finished with 46 tackles, one sack and two passes defended.

Buggs’ return lessens the need for defensive line help in Detroit. He and Alim McNeill, who largely switched to the 3T role once Buggs got more acclimated to the Lions, form a solid core to build around up front.

Per Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, it’s a two-year deal worth $6 million for Buggs.

One potential free agent for every position on the Lions defense

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Studs and Duds from the Lions Week 14 victory over the Vikings

Here are this weeks Studs and Duds for the the Detroit Lions as they continue their winning ways beating the Minnesota Vikings, 34-23,

The Detroit Lions continue their impressive run with a 34-23 victory over their division rival, the Minnesota Vikings, winning five of their last six games.

The Lions continue to put the league on notice as they are no longer the pushover team or redemption game from the past, but the team who knock you down if you aren’t careful. Through aggressive play calling, stout defense and strong execution, the Lions are now making noise in the playoff hunt.

Even though the Vikings continued to fight back, the Lions were in control throughout the game and never surrendered the lead. It might not have been the cleanest game, but the mistakes that would’ve brought down past Lions teams, this year’s squad has learned to bounce back and fight to the last second. The offense looked in sync, the defense played strong, and even special teams were spot on. When you play complementary football, this is what you get and something many people can get used to seeing.

There are many high fives to hand out, as many had strong performances this week, but unfortunately, some did not have the greatest showings. So here are this week’s studs and duds.

Lions unsung hero: Isaiah Buggs is a true leader for the franchise

Isiah Buggs has turned into a defensive catalyst for the Detroit Lions and emerging as a true leader for the franchise.

I’m sure as a kid (or an adult), when you were outside, you would go searching for little treasures, lifting any log or rock you could find, and the majority of the time, you would come across a lot of creepy crawlers. Well, the Detroit Lions lifted a massive rock this offseason and found their own bug, Isaiah Buggs, to be more exact.

I know it’s a bad pun joke, but seriously the Lions struck gold when they brought in Buggs after the sudden retirement of John Penisini. He fits exactly what GM Brad Holmes and Coach Dan Campbell are trying to build in Detroit as a man with grit, tenacity, and a no-quit attitude. Even though Buggs was a late addition in the offseason, it has not stopped him from turning into not only an impact player but a leader in Detroit.

The way Buggs presents himself, you would think he is a seasoned vet, but this is only his fourth year in the league, and he is making one massive impression on a defense full of young talent. Even Aidan Hutchinson has spoken out about Buggs and how much of an impact he has made in Detroit.

“He’s huge. He’s really become one of the vocal guys in our room,” Hutchinson said of No. 96. “Kind of I’m not going to say it came out of nowhere. But it’s something that, when we were down and out, he was one of those guys that was an anchor for our team. Now he’s going out there and making the plays. It’s just that’s what you want your leaders to do.”

Buggs is about as selfless as they come, usually not blowing up the stat sheet, but that is due to opening up avenues for others to make their impact felt. Now and again, though, the silent assassin comes up with a play of his own, and none of them were bigger than the forced fumble against Dalvin Cook this past week.

The Lions were up by a touchdown, but the Vikings were looking to double-dip as they would receive the ball to open the second half. It was 1st-and-goal, three yards from the end zone, prime territory for the dangerous Dalvin Cook. The play did end up going to Cook, but the Vikings were trying to catch the Lions off guard and have Cook dump it to one of their tight ends. The play might’ve worked as the tight end was open, but Buggs had other plans as he blew through the line and knocked the ball out of Cook’s hand into his teammate Kerby Joseph’s.

The reason for the immediate disruption is because Buggs caught wind of the something and instantly notified his teammates of the trickery,

“We smelled a rat. I kinda smelled it at the beginning, they was doing a lot of talking and I kinda smelled it out. I had to alert the line, let them know what was going on and then just went and made a play,” Buggs told Ben Raven of MLive.

The Lions rookie pass rushers, Hutchinson and James Houston, have been quite the tandem as of late, recording sack after sack. One of the reasons why they can tee off like they are is because of the focus offenses have to put on Buggs. The pressure he can create in the middle is nothing you can ignore because if Hutchinson was able to get the sack, Buggs was right there waiting for Cousins to clean up the mess.

Coach Campbell noticed Buggs’s effort this week and rewarded him with a game ball during the locker room celebration. Campbell referred to Buggs and others as “glue guys” to describe the hard workers that do the dirty work and may go unnoticed. Even Buggs got the game ball for this week; it’s the effort he has brought every week this season.

“If you don’t have enough of those guys, you won’t win in this league and you need a certain amount you certainly need the guys that can give you some juice over the top and all those things as well,” Campbell said. “But man, if you don’t have the guys that are just 100% unselfish, do exactly what they’re asked to do. Do all the dirty work, it’s hard to get places. But we do, we’ve got a lot of those guys and we trust a lot of those guys and we value them.”

The Lions are the talk of the league right now as they continue to show doubters they are for real and are hungry. They are fighting for a playoff spot, and if you ask anyone, the Lions are probably a team you don’t want to run into with how they have been playing as of late. The defense has stepped up massively, and you don’t have to look any further than Buggs, who helped elevate the players as the motivator and dominator for Detroit. He has been a diamond in the rough, and Buggs himself can sense the tides changing surrounding the Lions,

“I love this team. This team coming together tremendously. We finding a way how to win. And everybody is just buying in, collectively — the coaches, the players, everybody. We’re a family here. And as long as we keep doing that, we’ll continue to win.”

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‘When we execute, we win’: Lions DT Isaiah Buggs channels Aaron Glenn’s message

The Lions recent defensive improvement (18th in the last 3 games) comes from the players executing the game plan

“When we execute, we win.”

It sounds like a simple and obvious message. Yet it’s not something the Detroit Lions have been able to do well in 2022, particularly on the defensive side of the ball.

When defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs stood in front of the Lions media on Monday and said those words, it resonated well beyond the press room.

“When we execute, we win. And that’s what we did on Sunday,” Buggs said confidently.

Buggs talked about that simple concept being the mantra from coordinator Aaron Glenn. It’s become a major point of emphasis, having individual players execute their assignments to make the collective defense better.

And it’s progressively working. The Lions remain dead last in scoring defense on the season, but the unit has bubbled up to 18th in points allowed over the last three games.

“It’s about everybody doing their job from the front end to the back end,” Buggs said when talking about the Week 10 matchup with the Chicago Bears. “If everybody controls what they can control and do their job, we’ll win this game.”

Those words from Buggs channel the message Glenn gives to his defensive players time and again. Execute the game plan and good things happen. The lack of adherence to the game plan is a major reason why DBs coach Aubrey Pleasant was dismissed after a sloppy effort in the Week 8 loss to Miami.

Sunday’s 15-9 win over Green Bay was just the second time since 2014 the Lions held the Packers to under 10 points. Buggs didn’t record a tackle in the game but was credited with two hits and three pressures of QB Aaron Rodgers in Week 9.

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