Vaki Returns for Friday Practice

Lions' running back avoids serious injury, returns for Friday practice.

Detroit Lions running back Sione Vaki. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Detroit Lions conducted a scrimmage in their final practice before heading to the Big Apple.

On Friday, coach Dan Campbell pitted the offense against the defense for an intrasquad battle that involved a number of different scenarios and starting points for the offense.

The Lions put plenty on the plate of their players, utilizing the practice to build a competitive atmosphere reminiscent of a preseason game.

Running back Sione Vaki was back in action after leaving practice Thursday with a shoulder injury. Campbell said the rookie avoided significant injury, and he received carries throughout practice with the third-team offense.

Offensive lineman Kayode Awosika was not observed participating in the scrimmage.

Running back Zonovan Knight was observed in the early portion during warmups, but did not participate actively in the scrimmage.

Vaki, a Utah product, is still adapting to his position after being a predominately defensive player in college. He has plenty of upside and intriguing instincts, but developing the nuances of playing the position remains a priority.

"He is growing and he's learning. I just bring it up again, he is new to the position," Campbell said. "I think for him, a lot of it is gonna be, really, the carries. What he's looking at, his vision, because that's where he's pretty smart. He's pretty instinctive, he's picking up the pass game, the protection. But I think that's where he's got a huge ceiling to grow is carrying the football and reading off blocks and understanding where we want it to go and playing ball there, which would make sense because we haven't done a ton of it. Look, he's doing a good job, he's doing good on special teams as well, and look, the kid's putting in the work too. He's young and he's raw."