Steve Wirtel – Syndication Server

Packers sign new long snapper to practice squad, release DL Willington Previlon

The Packers signed LS Steve Wirtel to the practice squad and released DL Willington Previlon in the corresponding roster move.

The Green Bay Packers might be sticking with Hunter Bradley as the only long snapper on the roster, but he’ll have competition from a newcomer on the practice squad.

The Packers announced the signing of Steven Wirtel, an undrafted free agent from Iowa State.

To make room for Wirtel on the 16-player practice squad, the Packers released defensive lineman Willington Previlon.

Wirtel spent last year on the practice squad of the Detroit Lions. He was with the Los Angeles Rams – and new punter Corey Bojorquez – this summer.

General manager Brian Gutekunst confirmed Wednesday that the Packers would be sticking with Bradley as the team’s long snapper. Wirtel provides competition – and some insurance – behind him.

Wirtel appeared in 51 games as a long snapper at Iowa State. In 2019, he was named a finalist for the Patrick Mannely Award, which is given to the nation’s best long snapper. He was also named to the Big 12 first team by Phil Steele during each of his final three seasons, and he was invited to the 2019 Senior Bowl and NFL Scouting Combine.

Previlon spent all of last season on the Packers practice squad and was signed back on Wednesday after being waived on Tuesday.

Detroit Lions long snapper Steven Wirtel (49) snaps the ball to holder Arryn Siposs during an NFL football camp practice, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2020, in Allen Park, Mich. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

[listicle id=61484]

Quotes from the Lions’ beat: Praise for rookies during early days of training camp

During the first few days of Detroit Lions’ 2020 training camp, local beat writers have had lots of praise for the team’s rookies.

With no Spring camp, no preseason, and limited practices, rookies across the NFL were expected to be playing behind the eight-ball entering training camp.

“A lot of the rookies we’re trying to take it slow with,” Detroit Lions coach Matt Patricia said after Monday’s practice. “There’s a lot of information that they have to learn and certainly from a standpoint of being on the field for the first time in an NFL practice with pads on, there’s definitely just a lot coming at those guys from different directions.”

Despite the accelerated learning curve, and the Lions taking a slow approach, several Lions’ rookies have looked ahead of schedule during the early portions of training camp.

Lions Wire has yet to be out to Lions training camp this offseason — our turn in the rotation begins on Friday — but for now, let’s take a look at what the rest of the Lions beat writers have had to say through the first two practices.

Jonah Jackson starting at RG

Third-round pick Jonah Jackson was starting at right guard on Day 1 of padded practices and his consistent play earned positive remarks from all the Lions beat.

At his post-practice press conference, Patricia made sure to acknowledge that the guards have been rotating in training camp. “Really, Oday (Aboushi) and Kenny (Wiggins) and those guys have been working through there previous to getting out there today, so it’s kind of just a rotational thing that wound up being the first day of pads.”

But went he Lions took the field for the second day of practice, Jackson was once again holding down the starting position at right guard.

Quotes from the beat: “Rookie guard Jonah Jackson has gotten a lot of run with the first-team offense the first two days of padded practice at right guard. During an offense vs. defense run drill the rookie showed off his athleticism and power when he pulled left and pancaked Ragland right on his butt in one rep. It’s early, but Jackson has shown some good things through the first two days.” — Tim Twentyman, Detroit Lions senior writer’s Tuesday observations.

“The Lions didn’t trade up for Jackson in the third round for nothing.” — Kyle Meinke of MLive.

Jeff Okudah with the second team … for now

Expectations are that third overall pick Jeff Okudah will be one of the Lions starting cornerbacks when they open the regular season, but for now, he is having to earn that spot and is playing with the reserves.

Of note, Kenny Golladay mentioned that both he and Marvin Jones made a point of having Okudah skip the line in one-on-ones so they could match up against him because that’s the level “of competition (Okudah will) be seeing come Sunday.”

Quote from the beat: “As for Okudah, the expectation for most is he’ll be a Week 1 starter. But Patricia is going to make the rookie earn the job and he likes the way the competition is shaping up in the back end of the defense.” — Justin Rogers of the Detroit News.

D’Andre Swift catching on quickly

Second-round rookie running back D’Andre Swift is quickly living up to expectations — most notable because of his route running and pass-catching chops.

Swift mentioned that he feels really comfortable on the field already, and while he is still working to absorb the playbook as quickly as possible to earn the coaches’ trust, he has turned to veterans like Matthew Stafford, Kerryon Johnson, and Ty Johnson for advice.

Quote from the beat: “You’ve probably already seen every Lions beat guy Tweet about how rookie D’Andre Swift looked absolutely uncoverable as a receiver on Tuesday, and they’re all correct.” — Jeremy Reisman of pride of Detroit wrote after his Tuesday Observations.

Julian Okwara taking it slow

Julian Owara is a tremendous athlete and his attributes will likely be featured in situational pass-rushing roles early in the season. But, for Okwara to justify a spot on the roster he will need to expand his game more and that means contributing in other phases of the game.

Quote from the beat: “During individual drills, Okwara was mostly repping with special teams and not the linebackers. He got a fair amount of second and/or third-team jack linebacker reps, but it appears the Lions are trying to get him ready for a special teams role first and will rotate him into the regular defense later.” — Reisman’s observations from Tuesday.

Logan Stenberg competiting

For now, Logan Stenberg has been taking reps at third-string left guard behind starter Joe Dahl and veteran Oday Aboushi, as well as rotating through snaps at reserve center.

Quote from the beat: “Stenberg still has some bad habits to break. He’s still playing too tall out of his stance. He competes, but it’s not as clean (as Jackson) right now.” — Nick Baumgardner of the Athletic (subscription).

Quintez Cephus looks like he belongs

Fifth-round wide receiver has also gotten a handful of “he looks like he belongs” quotes from the beat and he is a player that appears on track for a contributing role early in the season.

Quote from the beat: “Back during the NFL Combine, Jeff Okudah said that the best receiver he went up against in college was Quintez Cephus. Well, Cephus proved him right on Tuesday, beating Okudah on back-to-back reps during one-on-ones.” Reisman’s observations.

Jashon Cornell suffers “pretty severe” injury

Seventh-round defensive lineman Jashon Cornell went down in practice on Tuesday and the early reports were bad. Things appeared worse when Patrica called his injury “pretty severe” in his post-practice presser, and took a final turn for worse when the Free Press’ Dave Birkett reported that it was an Achilles injury. If it’s a tear, he’s done for the season.

Quote from the beat: “Cornell, a seventh-round pick out of Ohio State, injured his left Achilles tendon during a one-on-one pass-rushing drill near the end of practice. He screamed in pain as he fell to the ground while making a move on guard Kenny Wiggins.” — Dave Birkett of the Free Press.

No quotes for these rookies yet

Jason Huntley, John Penisini, Hunter Bryant, Jalen Elliott, Bobby Price, Luke Sellers, Arryn Siposs, and Steve Wirtel have all flown a but under the radar early in camp but it’s still early.

Establishing the 53: Landing on a punter

Examining the Detroit Lions special teamers and debating who and how many players they will keep on the 53-man roster.

It’s never too early to examine and speculate about the Detroit Lions roster. Currently, the Lions have 90-players on their roster, and come September, there will likely be some difficult decisions to make when determining their final 53-players.

Previously, in this series of articles at Lions Wire, I identified the first 50 players in my projection by rounding out the running backs group, declaring a winner in the fullback versus H-back competition, adding an offensive weapon, narrowing down the offensive line, breaking down the defensive line, establishing the top options at linebacker, and sorting the defensive backs. In this piece, I will fill out the final three spots on the projected roster by examining the specialists in the kicking game.

Placekicker

Matt Prater sits alone on the placekicking depth chart with no threat to his roster spot — if there was any doubt.

Erik’s take: Not only is Prater kicking unopposed, but he is in the final year of his contract and is a real contender for a fall contract extension.

Long snapper

Don Muhlbach will split long snapping duties in camp with undrafted rookie Steve Wirtel, who will be looking to show off his potential for 31 teams in the NFL. But unless Muhlbach suffers an injury, Wirtel won’t knock off Muhlbach for the Lions job.

Wirtel was likely added to the roster for four main reasons. First, Wirtel was on the Lions roster at the Senior Bowl and likely established a solid relationship with the staff. Second, he was widely considered the second-best long snapper in this class — the first was drafted by the Dolphins — and has NFL talent. Third, Muhlbach will turn 39-years-old during training camp and will require rest periods as not to be overworked. And lastly, Muhlbach could retire in the next few years and the Lions could be building the groundwork to bring back Wirtel in the future.

Erik’s take: ~~The goat~~ Muhlbach isn’t going anywhere.

Punter battle

The Lions have two punters on the roster, Jack Fox and Arryn Siposs. Let’s take a closer look at each to see if either can separate from the other.

Fox went undrafted out of Rice in 2019 and signed with the Kansas City Chiefs. He played so well during the last years training camp and preseason that the Chiefs initially placed him on the practice squad before eventually moving on when they need more space. The Lions seized the opportunity to sign Fox to their practice squad in early December and when he showed well during practices, they signed him to a futures deal in January.

Fox has a very big leg, averaged 45.5 yards per punt at Rice, and has the ability to flip the field with any kick. Behind the scenes of Allen Park, Fox has been held in such high regard that Dave Birkett of the Free Press suggested the “Fox may be good enough that the Lions don’t need to draft a punter this offseason” — which indeed came to fruition.

While they didn’t draft a punter, immediately following the draft the Lions added Siposs to compete with Fox. The addition of Siposs isn’t just as a camp leg either, he is plenty talented enough to play in the NFL, and he is a bit different than your average rookie punter.

Siposs was drafted by the Saints at age 17 — that’s the St. Kilda Saints of the Australian Football League — where he played Australian rules football professionally for five years before shoulder injuries forced him from the league. In 2017, Siposs pivoted to American football and earned a scholarship to Auburn for the last two years.

A natural athlete, Siposs offers the Lions a different kind of punter. One who is comfortable kicking both traditionally and in creative/unique ways — including punting on the move, cross body, and directionally unique angles.

While training camp will ultimately decide Fox and Siposs fate, each offer Lions new special teams coach Brayden Coombs something special to work with.

Erik’s take: This is a true camp battle but based on the Lions approach this offseason, most indicators point to Fox being in the lead for now. I’m penciling him into my 53-man roster.

Breaking down the Lions 2020 UDFA contract guarantees and bonuses

Examining the Detroit Lions 2020 undrafted free agents’ contract guarantees/bonuses, and projecting how that impacts their roster status.

The Detroit Lions have signed all seven players from their 2020 undrafted free agent class and now their contract numbers, including guaranteed money and signing bonuses, are being released (via Overthecap.com).

The guaranteed money involved in UDFA contracts speaks to how much the team values a player but it doesn’t always guarantee them a spot on the 53-man roster or practice squad.

Looking back at 2019 and 2018 UDFA contracts

If we look at the last two years of Lions UDFA classes we can see players who receive the most money have a better shot at sticking around in some form, but if they are outperformed in training camp, the Lions have no issues moving on from them. Likewise, a player who wasn’t guaranteed a significant amount of money can also find themselves on the roster if they stand out in camp.

2019 roster/practice squad	Total Guaranteed	2019 UDFA rank	2018 roster/practice squad	Total Guaranteed	2018 UDFA rank
Beau Benzschawel (roster)	$80,000	2nd	Brandon Powell (roster)	$44,000	1st
C.J. Moore (roster)	$27,000	5th	Mike Ford (PS/roster)	$27,500	3rd
Matt Nelson (PS)	$15,000	7th
Jon Duhart (PS)	$10,000	8th
Kevin Strong (roster)	$6,000	9th
Tom Kennedy (PS/roster)	$0	11th

Last year, the Lions gave offensive tackle Ryan Pope a hefty $165,000 in guaranteed money but he was dominated in camp and to no one’s surprise, he was released before the regular season. Meanwhile, Beau Benschawel turned around his training camp, developing quickly down the stretch, and earned a spot on the active roster. Kevin Strong was the surprise camp darling last fall, significantly outperforming his guaranteed money, but the biggest winner was Tom Kennedy, who didn’t initially receive a UDFA contract — he had to earn one via a try out — and thus had zero guarantees in his deal.

2020 UDFA contracts

Despite having a smaller UDFA class this cycle, the Lions stayed relatively consistent with how they distributed their money, investing in four key players at the top, while handing out smaller bonuses to players who could surprise.

	Total Guaranteed	Salary	Roster bonus	2020 Cap Hit
Jalen Elliott	$100,000	$85,000	$15,000	$615,000
Jeremiah Dinson	$80,000	$50,000	$30,000	$620,000
Arryn Siposs	$65,000	$50,000	$15,000	$615,000
Hunter Bryant	$60,000	$40,000	$20,000	$616,666
Steve Wirtel	$22,000	$15,000	$7,000	$612,333
Luke Sellers	$10,000	$5,000	$5,000	$611,666
Bobby Price	$0	$0	$0	$610,000

It’s worth noting that Elliott received more guaranteed money than Benschawel, Dinson the same amount, while Siposs and Bryant earned more than any other UDFA in 2019 and every UDFA in 2018. Looking solely at the money, it’s fair to say the Lions are hoping those four play well enough to challenge for a roster spot.

Beyond the money, it’s fair to say those four also have the best chance among the UDFAs of earning a roster spot. Eliott and Dinson will challenge last year’s UDFA special teams ace C.J. Moore, while Siposs is in a two-man competition with Jack Fox for the punter job, and Bryant’s skillset may require him to beat out last year’s seventh-round tight end Isaac Nauta or a sixth wide receiver.

When the Lions head into training camp, based on the guaranteed money and opportunities available, Eliott, Dinson, Siposs, and Bryant are the names to watch.

Every Lions Wire article about the Lions’ 2020 draft class

A comprehensive collection of every Lions Wire article about the Detroit Lions’ 2020 draft class, including undrafted free agents.

During the 2020 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions drafted nine players and signed seven undrafted free agents. Articles were produced at a rapid pace and it’s possible some fans may have missed some of Lions Wire’s coverage.

So in order to make sure we’ve got you covered, here is every article we wrote about all 16 players acquired by the Lions both during and after the draft.