Tag: Lions training camp

Amani Oruwariye embracing his leadership role in the Lions secondary

Cornerback Amani Oruwariye embracing his leadership role in the Lions secondary

Amani Oruwariye is entering his fourth NFL season, all with the Detroit Lions. That’s not a wealth of experience, but it makes the 26-year-old Oruwariye a veteran leader in Detroit’s precocious CB room.

While free agent acquisition Mike Hughes has an extra year of playing experience, Oruwariye is more than a full year older than Hughes. That makes him an unusually young greybeard for the team.

Oruwariye feels like he’s ready to step up as a leader and mentor.

“Just from an experience standpoint — age-wise, there are a lot of guys around my age, guys who have been here with me,” Oruwariye said last week. “But just from experience, I’ve played a lot, been in different systems with different coaches, played a majority of these teams, so I do feel a sense of responsibility, a lot of responsibility, to make sure the guys are ready to go. Make sure everyone is just prepared and working like a professional every single day.”

Oruwariye is coming off a strong season where he led the Lions with six interceptions. He played nearly every snap, a rare beacon of stability in the injury-ravaged cornerback room. No. 24 is embracing the challenge of the responsibility of helping be the bedrock veteran even though he’s still playing on his first NFL contract.

“I take pride in it. It just means that I come to work every day, be the best teammate I can every day and try to be the best Amani I can every day too for my teammates. That’s really it.”

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Watch: Live interview with Jerry Jacobs from Detroit Lions Podcast training camp party

Dan Miller joined the Detroit Lions Podcast to help interview Lions CB Jerry Jacobs on Saturday night

Saturday night provided a treat for the fans who packed the Uptown Grille in Commerce Township for the sixth annual Detroit Lions Podcast training camp party. Lions cornerback Jerry Jacobs appeared live for a Q&A period that also featured “Voice of the Lions” Dan Miller leading the interview.

We asked Jacobs about his recovery from a torn ACL and how he keeps a positive mindset about not being ready for the start of training camp. Jacobs shared some great insight on the defensive back room and the dynamics between the coaches and players under Dan Campbell.

It’s a great, candid 30 minutes with a player who fits prominently into Detroit’s future. After he left the stage, Jacobs graciously signed gear and took photos with fans — including one who had a Jacobs No. 39 jersey.

 

The first Hard Knocks trailer for the Lions is out

Hard Knocks featuring the Lions debuts on August 9th

Now that training camp is underway, it’s getting very close for the Lions’ debut on “Hard Knocks”. The behind-the-scenes documentary show from HBO put out the first trailer for the debut episode, giving a little taste of what’s to come on the show.

The NFL Network put out the first look at this year’s Hard Knocks, which you can watch here.

The one-minute clip features live-action shots from different days of training camp and some of the coaches in action too. There are shots inside the locker room and around the training facility.

Hard Knocks debuts on August 9th on the streaming platform.

Rookie CB Chase Lucas earns praise from Dan Campbell

Chase Lucas has stood out on special teams drills and at slot corner coverage in the first few days of Lions training camp

When Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell was asked which rookies are catching his eye, Campbell noted it’s difficult to evaluate a lot without pads being on in practices. But two names sprang to mind for the energetic coach.

First up was No. 2 overall pick Aidan Hutchinson, who has been off to a great start in a very visible role. After Campbell praised Hutchinson, his attention turned to the final Lions pick in the 2022 NFL draft, cornerback Chase Lucas.

“I would say Lucas – Lucas has caught my eye, and I would tell you – particularly in the special teams drills,” Campbell said before Saturday’s practice. “That’s where I really see it, the compete drills. And there’s an awareness about him, he’s pretty instinctive, and he’s aggressive and you’ve got to have all of that to be a good special teams player.”

Lucas has done fine in team drills, primarily serving as the third-team slot cornerback. He has bumped up to the second unit for reps, too.

Campbell also made mention of sixth-round rookie Malcolm Rodriguez in a special teams context, explaining that the lack of pads makes deeper evaluation more difficult for defenders.

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Lions training camp notebook: Day 4

Detroit Lions training camp notebook: Day 4 news and notes from Allen Park

Season ticket holders brought a lot of energy to the fourth day of Detroit Lions training camp. The grandstands were packed with fans getting their first look at Dan Campbell’s second Detroit team.

The fans got to see the last day of pad-free action under a cloudless morning sky. There were a few highlights and emerging storylines to come out on Saturday morning.

Here’s what I saw, heard and took away from Day 4 of Lions training camp.

Lions training camp notebook: Day 3 notes and observations

Lions training camp notebook: Day 2 top observations

Top observations from the first day of Detroit Lions training camp

Finding workload balance for D’Andre Swift a challenge for Lions coach Dan Campbell

Campbell talked up Swift’s explosive skills but also the need to keep him fresh for 17 games

D’Andre Swift is a popular pick to have a fantastic season in 2021. Now in his third season in Detroit, the running back looks physically outstanding in Lions training camp.

While the Lions have added considerable talent around him on the offensive weaponry list from a year ago, Swift still figures quite prominently in the Lions offensive plans.

That was on full display in Friday’s practice session. Swift was a fixture in the red zone offense drill, using his receiving skills and ability to make defenders miss in space quite effectively.

Those are qualities head coach Dan Campbell wants to use more in 2022–without overworking Swift.

“Swift is one of our most explosive players on offense,” Campbell said Friday. “Like literally, we feel like, ‘Alright man, if we set this up right and there’s any space, this guy can take it to the house.’

He’s got that ability, and so my gosh man, you want those guys out there every play, but you also know, you may not have – I think a little bit, what you’re asking goes into what he just asked. I would like to see, if we get him out of camp, get his legs under him, get him in really good shape, like I said get the intensity, get the volume under him and then let’s see where he looks like.”

Campbell’s concern is justified. Swift has played in just 13 games in each of his first two seasons. Last year he missed time in training camp as well, something that Campbell is acutely attentive to, knowing that workload management is critical.

“Look, this time last year, we went and we had to pull back man. He missed – shoot man, week and a half, two weeks in camp for the most part,” Campbell said. “So, we really never got to put a load on him and get him prepared for a season. We have him ready for San Fran and he takes – he takes quite a bit of reps, we didn’t want to do that, but yet it just kind of happened that way. We throw him a string, he takes it to the house, you’re trying to win a game, and so that may have started that whole – he didn’t get the load in camp and here you go, first game out of the box, he’s got quite a load on him. Then, it just starts to stack over time, we don’t make it through a season, halfway through the season, 10 games in or whatever that is, it starts to – and so, I kind of think of it as that may have started in camp. So, let’s see what we can do with him.”

Finding the balance between keeping Swift healthy and fresh for 17 games and also taking as much advantage of his particular set of skills will be an important job for Campbell and his staff.

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Jeff Okudah off to a great start in rewriting his Detroit Lions career

Cornerback Jeff Okudah is healthy and off to a great start in Detroit Lions training camp

There’s no beating around the bush here. I’ll just come out and say it:

Jeff Okudah is off to a fantastic start at Detroit Lions training camp.

The jersey number is new, the competition around him has improved and the expectations for the third-year cornerback have dimmed a little. But Okudah sure has looked a lot like the guy the Lions–team, fans, media–expected when the prior Detroit regime made Okudah the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft.

Granted the pads aren’t on yet and the drills have been limited. Okudah can’t control the NFL rules and limitations to start camp. Everything that he can control, Okudah is dominating.

He’s the fastest corner of those who will play regularly. He’s probably the strongest too, though Jerry Jacobs (currently recovering from an injury of his own) might have something to say about that. And he’s proving he can apply those impressive physical skills into consistently winning in coverage.

Take Thursday’s practice. In one period of a drill, Okudah:

  • Rode wideout Quintez Cephus out of bounds with a jam without doing anything illegal
  • Ran step for step with WR Josh Reynolds on a deep route in perfect stride
  • Correctly anticipated a comeback route by Cephus and jumped it, forcing QB Jared Goff to double-clutch and throw elsewhere

There was more strong play in Friday’s session. He got beat once in the red zone drill, losing DJ Chark in traffic across the middle. That was about the only blemish on Okudah’s day. He’s been both anticipatory and quick to react, showing closing burst and confidence in his eyes–the two things (aside from health) that he struggled with the most in his first two NFL years.

Okudah’s head coach remains very optimistic about the 23-year-old cornerback.

“Nobody wants it more than he does,” Dan Campbell said Wednesday. “I mean he’s put in the work, he looks healthy, and I think at this point all you can do now is go to work and show what you’ve got and see if you can continue to progress. Because look, ultimately, that’s the thing here is he just hadn’t got a ton of football in him because of the injury.”

That optimism is not unfounded. Okudah looked very impressive last summer in training camp, asserting himself as the best defensive back on the team. He was healthy after a disappointing rookie campaign where he battled a sports hernia and never got acclimated to the NFL.

All that promise from a year ago was washed away with the Achilles injury in Week 1. It’s something Okudah has an appreciation for now, something he shared with reporters after Wednesday’s practice.

“A blessing just to know where I was at a year ago,” Okudah said. “First time competing in about 11 months, so just to get out here was a really, really big accolade for me personally.”

It’s understandable if fans remain skeptical. They’ve not seen nearly enough good from Okudah in two years. Not even close. He’s poised to change that in 2022. Okudah is off to a great start in rewriting his career story in Detroit.

Can the positive story stay on script once the games start meaning something? We’ll find out. As long as Okudah is healthy, I’m definitely buying the new story he’s writing this summer.

Lions training camp notebook: Day 3 notes and observations

Notes from Day 3 of Detroit Lions training camp on red zone offense, backup TEs rising up, 2-minute drill blues and more

Day 3 of Detroit Lions training camp is now in the books.

Friday saw the arrival of Lions’ friends and family in the stands, the first day where anyone besides Lions employees and media was present at camp. Alas, pads will not come on for the players until Monday, but we still got to glean quite a bit from the sun-soaked morning session.

Here’s what I saw, heard and noted in Friday’s practice in Allen Park.

Top observations from the first day of Detroit Lions training camp

Lions training camp notebook: Day 2 top observations

Top photos from the first 2 days of Lions training camp

The top photos from the first two days of Detroit Lions training camp

The first two days of Detroit Lions training camp are in the books. The players, coaches, trainers and staff have been quite busy getting ramped up and ready for the 2022 season.

From Wednesday’s overcast morning to the bright sunshine on Thursday, it’s been a pleasant two days in Allen Park.

Here are some of the top photos taken from Lions training camp so far.

Dan Campbell wants players who see ‘same old Lions’ as a reason to come to Detroit

Campbell signed in Detroit as a player because he wanted to be part of the group that ended the “same old Lions”

Dan Campbell played the final three seasons of his lengthy NFL career as a Detroit Lion. Those three years, 2006 through 2008, coincide with the darkest time in the franchise’s less-than-stellar history.

Campbell, now the Lions head coach, knows full well the “same old Lions” saying. The derisive “SOL” is a yoke around the franchise that many fans and certain media use all the time to explain why the Lions will never find success.

But Campbell sees the SOL as a recruiting tool. And it worked on him as a player nearly 20 years ago.

“Yes, I knew (about SOL) when I signed here as a player. For me, it was one of the reasons I wanted to sign here because man, who doesn’t want to come here and change that, to be part of that team that turns it around?”, Campbell said before Thursday’s practice.

Coach Campbell continued,

“I think that’s a motivating factor, and so I think for all of us coaches and players. But yeah, I think it’s a motivating factor. We can go round and round on this. You guys have lived it. Once you’ve gone through a great suffering if you will, as it pertains to sports and Lions football, then that’s when there’s a great triumph. And to be a part of that, to be able to help it become that, man that’s something special. I mean, that is special. Yeah, I think that motivates all of us a little bit here.”

It requires a different type of mindset to want to be part of an uprising rather than joining a team that has already had considerable success. Campbell embraces and embodies that mindset and wants players who are cut from that cloth, too.

Lions training camp notebook: Day 2 top observations