Inside Allen Park: Anemic Offense Dominated by Defense
The Detroit Lions' defense understands all the questions surrounding its ability to stop the run and pressure the quarterback.
After a disappointing season defensively that saw several key metrics rank fairly low, plus compared to other NFL teams, Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn must adapt and tailor his scheme to the players on the roster.
"I want to see all the guys in pads, but just to pick out certain guys, like (linebacker Malcolm) Rodriguez is one of them, because you just watch him in college, you see how physical he is in college. Man, you want to see if that’s going to transition over to our game in the NFL," Glenn said earlier this week.
Glenn continued, "James Houston, I want to see how he operates, and then just all of our inside backers, getting a chance to take on these guards and tackles that we have. I want to see how those guys operate, and then just the physical nature of all our defensive guys, alright, because that’s what we preach. And, you see that happen in the other practices. So, man, just excited to see how these guys operate.”
On Tuesday, the defense clearly had more energy, and attempted to thwart the efforts of the offense for the majority of practice.
Here are observations from Day 6 of training camp.
1.) The national media has started to visit the Lions' Allen Park practice facility. NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero broadcasted from practice, and interviewed Aidan Hutchinson. Also, "The Pivot Podcast" was heavily represented, with ESPN analyst Ryan Clark in attendance.
2.) Wideouts Kalil Pimpleton and Kalif Raymond flashed their speed early at practice, as they both were able to shed defenders quickly during the early offensive drills.
3.) The catch of the day was made by wideout Quintez Cephus, as he made an acrobatic catch with Jeff Okudah in coverage early on Tuesday. Unfortunately, that was Cephus' last rep of the day, as he left practice with a leg injury.
4.) The Lions' offense struggled to consistently make plays. Most of the work was done underneath. The quarterbacks were oftentimes scrambling, due to the consistent pressure being brought by the defense. It appeared as though the offense was out of sorts for most of the practice. There haven't been a significant amount of deep passes tossed, and no quarterback stood out for their play on Tuesday.
5.) The loudest the offense became was during a screen pass to running back Jermar Jefferson, which came from Tim Boyle. Jefferson flashed his speed, while bursting down the sideline and evading defenders. The entire offense came to celebrate with the second-year back. The young running back needs to continue to make plays, as he is likely falling down the depth chart behind Craig Reynolds.
6.) Wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown indicated things could get chippy at practice, and there were several moments Tuesday where the tensions started to elevate between the offense and defense. Cornerback Will Harris got chippy with the second-year wideout in coverage, and did not back down from a near confrontation.
7.) Linebacker Malcolm Rodriquez is quickly catching the attention of the coaching staff, due to his ability to read keys and to quickly shoot into the gaps to make plays. On Tuesday, he popped running backs, linemen and acclimated himself well while working on the second team.
After practice, he spoke to a small group of reporters about how Chris Spielman has spoken to him about overcoming his stature to make plays. The rookie has watched a significant amount of film on Spielman, and respects the heavy hits he consistently put on opposing players.
8.) The defensive line had itself quite the practice. Austin Bryant blew through the offensive line, and would have had a sack. He demonstrated speed and improved pass-rush moves during second-team work.
9) Linebacker Derrick Barnes saw some action with the first-team defense, playing alongside veteran Alex Anzalone. Aaron Glenn made it a point to bring more pressure, and applauded the efforts of Barnes when the Purdue product found his way into the backfield.
10.) Linebacker Chris Board is also having a solid first training camp with the Lions. Campbell called the veteran linebacker over the weekend a "really good athlete."
He continued, "Board doesn’t say much, but he hears everything. He hears it all, and he communicates when he needs to. But, he just works, and look, best exposure I have for him in this league was obviously versus Baltimore. I had a lot of respect for the way that he plays the game. I know those guys were high on him. He catches your eye on special teams first. He’s another one of those guys who -- part of a core unit, he can do all of that for us. We’re letting him compete now, and they’re particularly in sub-defense at the WILL, because he does run well. So, he’s smart, he’s learning."
11.) Running back Jamaal Williams attempts to stay to sign all autographs requested by fans who stick it out and stay until the end of practice. He revealed post-practice that fans gifted him an anime bag, which he plans to keep in his man cave.
