What Detroit Lions Are Getting in Safety Alijah Holder
Chad Jensen covers the Denver Broncos for Mile High Huddle.
He answered five questions to help supporters of the Lions get to know new safety Alijah Holder.
1.) Can you tell me about safety Alijah Holder's time with the Denver Broncos?
Chad Jensen: Holder was signed as a compensatory free agent to play corner initially. Denver liked his football brain as a Stanford guy, and also liked his length and physicality. He struggled to crack the top of the depth chart, and eventually made the switch to safety last year, which seemed to better suit him.
2.) What factors played a part in Holder getting released?
Jensen: The Broncos had high-dollar investments in Justin Simmons and Kareem Jackson, and opted to prioritize the position in the draft rather than continue to rely on Holder as a viable threat to win the No. 3 or 4 safety gig.
3.) What are his biggest strengths and weaknesses?
Jensen: Football IQ, length and physicality are what drew the Broncos to Holder.
His weaknesses?
Hard to say due to his small sample size, but he seemed to lack ball skills and wasn't the most reliable tackler. Still, I'm having to nitpick there, because he was a solid developmental DB who simply didn't get the time needed to turn a corner in Denver.
© Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
4.) What are the Lions getting in their new safety?
Jensen: A scrappy guy with some physicality. He still needs coaching to refine the rougher edges of his game and needs to work on tackling and hands.
5.) How should the defense best use him in the secondary to maximize his skills?
Jensen: He can play either spot. But, so far, due to his lack of ball production, he'd likely thrive better in the box, if he could hone his tackling technique.
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