ALLEN PARK – The Detroit Lions kept every unnamed cornerback Dee Virgin on their original 53-man roster, and they kept every unnamed linebacker Anthony Pittman.
That means someone by the name of Elijah Lee was on the squad, but fifth-round pick Jason Huntley wasn’t.
Needless to say, cup day was filled with more surprises than usual for Bob Quinn and the Lions. Here’s a look at what exactly is going on:
Quarterback (2)
In: Matthew Stafford, Chase Daniel
Outside: David blough
Thoughts: Blough’s departure was not a shock, although it did surprise. There is so much uncertainty right now because of the pandemic, and now Detroit is testing positive after being reduced to a quarterback. Moreover, Matthew Stafford is not exactly the picture of health. He’s healthy right now, don’t get me wrong – and practicing really well, mind you – but he was also healthy by then each of the past two years. And each of the past two years he’s broken his back. He played there in 2018, but missed the last eight games of 2019. Blough made five of those starts and lost them all, though it wasn’t entirely his fault.
Blough has come a long way since then, and looked better than Chase Daniel for many days at camp. But Detroit was never going to part ways with Daniel after giving him that contract this offseason. It was still a question of whether the Lions wanted to wear three quarters, and they opted against it. Maybe not a shock, but certainly a surprise. They’ll try to get Blough into the practice squad, but don’t be surprised if someone asks him for waivers. Maybe even Chicago, which will face Detroit next week.
Receiver (6)
In: Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, Danny Amendola, Marvin Hall, Quintez Cephus, Jamal Agnew
Outside: Chris Lacy, Tom Kennedy, Victor Bolden
Thoughts: Lions chalked up here. Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, Danny Amendola and Marvin Hall were Detroit’s top four receivers last year. This is one of the best quartets in the league. Quintez Cephus was added in the fifth round of the draft and may well have been Detroit’s best rookie at camp. He is expected to share the slot shots with Amendola and Hall, although he can also go their separate ways widely. And Jamal Agnew is an All-Pro returning man who made his transition to wide receiver easy. He probably won’t play more than a few shots per game here, but he’s a threat with the ball in his hands.
Those six guys were the best in the camp and the Lions kept them all. This is perhaps the deepest group of leavers in the league. If they remain healthy, they will participate in the discussion.
Tight end (3)
In: TJ Hockenson, Jesse James, Hunter Bryant
Outside: Isaac Nauta, Matt Sokol
Thoughts: Hunter Bryant teamed up on Isaac Nauta, but don’t put it to the pen just yet. Bryant is battling a hamstring injury that has kept him from training in recent weeks. Detroit could have put him on the injured reserve, but that would have ended his season. Instead, the Lions could leave him on the roster for a day before moving him to the injured reserve on Sunday, which would make him eligible to return as early as Week 4. And judging by how Bryant practiced before the injury, it could be a good fit for this offense.
Bryant is therefore the only undrafted rookie to make the 53-player roster, but expect him to be transferred to the IR as early as Sunday, and someone – possibly Isaac Nauta himself. – added at the close end in between.
Just to say one more time: TJ Hockenson has had a fabulous training camp and looks set to be a more constant threat in the passing game. This includes the downfield. I just don’t know what the defenses are going to do because Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones are downstream threats as well. This passing game is going to be really good. Whatever over / under is on Matthew Stafford, bet the most.
Running back (5)
In: Kerryon Johnson, D’Andre Swift, Ty Johnson, Bo Scarbrough, Jason Cabinda (FB)
Outside: Jason Huntley, Wes Hills, Jonathan Williams
Thoughts: Huntley received a pink slip in the biggest surprise cut of the day. This is one of the biggest surprises on the list that I can remember from Bob Quinn’s day, to be honest with you. Quinn loves to hang on to draft picks, and Huntley was just selected in the fifth round of this year’s draft. Quinn hasn’t cut such a well-drafted guy since 2016, when he split from linebacker Antwione Williams (fifth round, 169th overall). It’s not like Huntley struggled either. In fact, he was really good as a wide receiver outside of the camp’s backfield. And with all the injuries in the backfield, including to the other guy who can catch passes – D’Andre Swift – I thought Huntley was safe. But the Lions thought his skills were too duplicative with Swift and possibly Jamal Agnew.
Offensive line (8)
In: Taylor Decker, Joe Dahl, Frank Ragnow, Jonah Jackson, Halapoulivaati Vaitai, Logan Stenberg, Tyrell Crosby, Matt Nelson
Outside: Kenny Wiggins, Oday Aboushi, Beau Benzschawel, Dan Skipper
Thoughts: The Lions turned their starting lineup upside down by cutting Rick Wagner and leaving Graham Glasgow to walk in free will. Now they have done the same at their bench, brushing aside Kenny Wiggins, Oday Aboushi and Beau Benzschawel. Each of these guys was with Detroit all last year, but the Lions are going with a youth movement instead. Their bench is now Logan Stenberg, a rookie fourth-round pick; Matt Nelson, a former Iowa defensive lineman who just moved to the offensive end last year; and Tyrell Crosby, a fifth-round pick in the 2018 draft. Detroit’s oldest offensive lineman is now Taylor Decker at the age of 27.
Add Hank Fraley’s promotion to offensive line coach, and so much about this group has changed from last season.
Defensive line (7)
In: Trey Flowers, Danny Shelton, Romeo Okwara, Nick Williams, Julian Okwara, Da’Shawn Hand, John Penisini
Outside: Kevin Strong, Frank Herron, Olive Sagapolu, Will Clarke, Kevin Wilkins, Albert Huggins
PUP: Austin bryant
Thoughts: The only surprise here is Kevin Strong, who left the squad after having had a strong rookie year in 2019. He was on the squad as an undrafted rookie, started six games and has restarted the intrasquad scrum from last week. But the club instead chooses Danny Shelton and John Penisini as race agents.
The big wild card here is Da’Shawn Hand. He was so good as a rookie, but only appeared in three games last year while facing an assortment of injuries, and got banged again at times in training camp. If he can regain his rookie form, Detroit should be in good shape to finally get the quarterback back. Without him he could struggle again.
Linebacker (8)
In: Jamie Collins, Jarrad Davis, Christian Jones, Jahlani Tavai, Reggie Ragland, Miles Killebrew, Jalen Reeves-Maybin, Elijah Lee
Outside: Anthony pittman
Thoughts: The Lions have loaded the linebacker more than anywhere else, with two more linebackers making the squad from last year. That includes Elijah Lee, arguably the most surprising player of the year to make the squad. You are excused if you don’t even remember that he signed with Detroit, as it happened on the same day that Reggie Ragland signed. Lee has played the past three years in San Francisco, where he started six games and recorded 76 tackles. He will likely contribute mostly on special teams, along with Miles Killebrew and Jalen Reeves-Maybin.
It’ll be interesting how the other five roles are sorted (and that doesn’t even include Julian Okwara, who spent much of training camp standing with linebackers). Jamie Collins will play almost 100% of the defensive shots, and he will play them all defense. Grownups aren’t supposed to move like him, and it will be fascinating to see how he’s deployed. But the same goes for Jarrad Davis and Jahlani Tavai, returns whose roles are likely to change a lot. Ditto for Christian Jones. With that many linebackers on the team, look for Detroit to try and catch the quarterback a little more often.
Secondary (11)
In: CB: Desmond Trufant, Justin Coleman, Amani Oruwariye, Jeff Okudah, Darryl Roberts, Tony McRae, Mike Ford. S: Tracy Walker, Duron Harmon, Will Harris, CJ Moore
Outside: CB Dee Virgin, S Jalen Elliott, S Bobby Price
Suspended: S Jayron Kearse
Thoughts: With longtime defensive back coach Cory Undlin now calling the games, it might not come as such a surprise to see Detroit go so far in the last two levels of defense. Still, it was a bit surprising to see Darryl Roberts, Tony McRae and Mike Ford all making reserve cornerbacks, although McRae and Ford plan to play a lot in special teams. It will be fascinating to see how Jeff Okudah fits into the mix. The third overall pick in the draft will start one day, but will that day be next Sunday? We’re betting Amani Oruwariye takes the start instead, with Okudah getting their feet wet with 15-20 shots against Chicago.
On the safe side, keep an eye out for Tracy Walker as the season starts. He was Detroit’s best safety last year, but he replaced Will Harris for much of training camp, even though Harris was a mess last year. You hope it’s just to make Harris work with those and help him develop after a tough rookie season, but you never know. Detroit also benched Graham Glasgow during camp days last year, and that continued into the season.
Specialists (3)
In: PK Matt Prater, P Jack Fox, LS 1 Don Muhlbach
Outside: P Arryn Siposs, LS Steven Wirtel
Thoughts: It reminds me of a story I heard once about a long snapper prospect who was in rookie camp with Detroit. One day he got on the bus to get to the facility and the driver said, “You might as well turn around now. We have the Long Snapper Nolan Ryan and you don’t make this team (beeping).
The best part of this story: It happened in 2008. It is now 2020 and Don Muhlbach is still in progress.
Make no mistake, Steven Wirtel had a good side, and some might even say a better side than Muhlbach. But there’s been so little practice time this year, and the Lions are accompanying the guy they know on something that requires as much timing precision as long shots. He joined the franchise in 2004 and has played 244 career games, the 56th in NFL history. By playing all games this season, Muhlbach would climb to at least 37th on the all-time games played list.
At the bettor the competition was tight but Jack Fox seemed to be the better option. He had a bigger, more consistent leg, a very good combination for a bettor. He replaces Sam Martin, who had been Detroit’s punter since 2013.
