Tag: Steven Gilmore

Studs and Duds for the Lions preseason loss against the Jaguars

Who helped and hurt themselves this week? Here are this week’s Stud and Duds for the Lions preseason loss against the Jaguars

The preseason is an opportunity for teams to assess their players, and the Detroit Lions relied on their backup players during their game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Unfortunately, they were unable to perform well and lost 25-7 in their second preseason game.

Since the starters were resting, we were able to observe the players who needed to prove themselves to secure a spot on the team. Although the offense was not performing at its best and the defense had some weaknesses, some players stood out, while others struggled.

Here are the Studs and Duds for the Lions in their game against the Jaguars this week. In this week’s edition, I focused on players who are right at the borderline of making the roster. I know Cominsky, Campbell, Walker, and Houston all had fantastic games, but we all know they are sticking around.

Watch: Rookie CB Steven Gilmore comes down with an excellent INT

Lions UDFA CB Steven Gilmore comes down with an excellent INT with an assist from Tracy Walker

There wasn’t much in the way of Detroit Lions highlights in the first quarter of Saturday’s preseason contest with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Undrafted rookie cornerback Steven Gilmore made sure the Lions had a fun won, however.

Gilmore, starting on the outside as the Lions rested all the regular starters, made an impressive interception off a savvy deflection from safety Tracy Walker. C.J. Beathard’s throw was initially set to be picked off by Walker, who ranged over the top beautifully.

Jaguars wideout Kevin Austin made a nice play to prevent Walker from cleanly catching it, but Gilmore was right there to clean up the play and make the takeaway.

Gilmore had a nice end zone pass breakup on the prior series too, nicely recovering after getting beaten on a long pass play on the same drive.

Lions UDFA profile: CB Steven Gilmore

Profiling Lions UDFA CB Steven Gilmore from Marshall, who has played well in training camp

Making an NFL roster as an undrafted free agent is a tall task, don’t tell that to Lions cornerback Steven Gilmore. 

In the continued tradition of simply finding gritty football players, general manager Brad Holmes may have another hit in the rookie from Marshall. Through the first week of training camp, Gilmore has impressed enough in camp that he is an early favorite to make the roster despite what his odds on paper say.

Coming out of Marshall, before making his way to Detroit, Gilmore didn’t catch any breaks throughout the draft process. Despite a productive season in the box score and according to PFF, he wouldn’t receive an invite to the NFL Scouting Combine which further put his NFL dreams behind the perennial eight ball.

That didn’t stop him though and while he enjoys success through the beginning of his first NFL training camp, it is important to understand what he does well to get him this far.

Undrafted rookie CB Steven Gilmore making plays at Lions camp

Steven Gilmore, an undrafted rookie CB from Marshall, is making a name for himself at Detroit Lions training camp

More than once on a damp Saturday morning in Allen Park, I was able to overhear a Detroit Lions fan wondering aloud, “Who is that No. 36 guy?”

That would be Steven Gilmore. The undrafted rookie cornerback from Marshall commanded a lot of attention from the fans in the stands at the first Lions practice of the summer open to the public. The younger brother of All-Pro CB Stephon Gilmore has the coaching staff taking notice too.

Head coach Dan Campbell is a fan of Gilmore’s early work in a Lions uniform.

“Yeah, we like Gilly,” Campbell said before Saturday’s practice,  once again adorning every player with a nickname. “We liked his tape too when he was coming out and he has some awareness about him, he has some instincts, he has ball skills, pretty good movement skills.”

Campbell then got to the physical limitations. Gilmore is listed at 6 feet tall and a scant 170 pounds. In person, he doesn’t even seem that heavy; his frame is very slight and the arms and legs are quite skinny even with some muscular defintion. While he doesn’t lack strength or fight for his mass, Gimore’s lack of bulk could be a real hindrance.

“I think for him, it’s going to be – some of it, along with development, is the physical development. He’s not a real big guy. He has to get a little bit of mass on him, get a little bit stronger. I think that will be – that’s kind of going to be part of what, with him, how fast can those things come to really help him, but we see growth out of him.”

That growth and potential was on full display in Saturday’s practice session. Gilmore had a nice strip tackle to create one takeaway, as well as an opportunistic interception off backup QB Nate Sudfeld where Gilmore’s alertness allowed him to capitalize on a forced, off-target throw deep down the seam.

Gilmore has had some other plays throughout the first week of practices, too. He’s sticky in man coverage and adjusts to the ball in the air better than many of his Lions DB peers. While he lacks mass, Gilmore does not lack fight — an endearing quality to both Campbell and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.

“We see development. We’re excited about him,” Campbell concluded about Gilmore.

Lions fans should be, too.