The sight players taking knee or standing around listening to the coaching staff prepare their team for full pad practices in July and the start of the season was the sights of the Lions’ first mini camp of the season. It was also another significant step in getting ready for a 2012 season in which the expectations are raised.
Lions head coach Jim Schwartz described the mini camp like this:
“We’re sort of installing, preparing to practice. That dynamic has changed a lot. This is a hard-working team. I’m very pleased with our offense.”
Schwartz wasn’t filled with excitement after practice, probably because he didn’t want practice to stop. Schwartz is a confident coach and is happy with the way his offense and defense looks.
“We’re at a different point in our installation than we’ve ever been,” Schwartz said.
“We were fourth year in an offensive system, fourth year in a defensive system. Like I mentioned before, we had some new wrinkles, some new things that we’re working on, but we’re not starting from scratch.”
Schwartz left the media on this note
“I tell people all the time, it’s like going out on a nuclear sub. You’re going on a six-month tour of duty. Kiss the wife and kids goodbye and you’ll be back in February. There’s something to that mindset. You have to have a good approach and be rested going into it.”
The Lions are still practicing without DE Cliff Avril as he waits for the Lions to make a move on a long term deal for him. Because of this he hasn’t signed his franchise tender. Avril has maintained in recent weeks that the ball is in the Lions court in terms of getting a deal done while the Lions say otherwise. Both sides have until July 16th to come up with a solution or Avril would have no choice but to sign the franchise tender. Last season Avril was second in the NFL with six forced fumbles and was tied for 11th with 11 sacks. Clearly not having him on the field is a huge loss but Lions fans shouldn’t get too down. After the mini camps were done it’s been said that Willie Young looks great and if he was allowed to hit the quarterback, then he would have chalked up a handful of sacks. Currently Willie Young is playing in Cliff Avril’s spot and has had plenty of reps with the first team defensive line unit. The coaching staff however would not comment on the Lions using different defensive line fronts such as Corey Williams and Sammie Hill at the defensive tackle spots while Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley played the end position.
Speaking of Nick Fairley expect him to get a multiple game suspension soon due to a possession of marijuana and a DUI charge. As for another player on the Lions roster who has had trouble with the law, Mikel Leshoure was suspended by the NFL for two games stemming from his own arrest for marijuana possession.
Other players to highlightt: Matthew Stafford is throwing great and is completing all his throws. His top target, Calvin Johnson is being Calvin Johnson. And as for Ndamukong Suh, well, he hasn’t stomped on anyone yet so that’s good but he is on a new reality TV show; The Choice.
In terms of the rookies, the news has been pretty good. Corners Jonte Green and Bill Bentley have had strong reps with the second team. Jonte Green looks fast and shows a good amount of strength while Bill Bentley intercepted a pass during team drills. Riley Reiff took plenty of reps with the second and third team and it’s being said he looks great as blocker due to his quick footwork. Ronnell Lewis from Oklahoma has been playing on the defensive line all off-season and hasn’t seen a rep at linebacker yet saying the “transition isn’t that hard”. Ryan Broyles has been limited to just position and individual drills during practice as the coaching staff stated they want him to be ready for training camp. The pick that I questioned coming out of the draft was Tahir Whitehead but it’s been seen and reported that he looks very fast and strong. Some question though if he can turn that combo into tackling fuel. In other words, can he tackle? We’ll find out soon enough.
As for other players; Lawrence Jackson would have had a handful of sacks on Tuesday if he was allowed to tackle the quarterback but he’s been looking very sharp in practice. Tony Scheffler looks a lot better than last year as he’s running faster and is showing strong hands. His counter part Brandon Pettigrew is showing stronger hands as well. Newly signed Jacob Lacey is also looking great with many believing the nickleback spot is his to lose.
Stefan Logan has seen some time at running back and it’s being assumed that his role on Sundays will be much more than just special teams. Speaking of special teams, Titus Young and Patrick Edwards are taking a lot of reps in the return game. Edwards, the undrafted rookie from Houston University is getting a lot of praise for his speed and it’s being said that he looks outstanding.
An interesting note concerning Titus Young and defensive back Aaron Berry. During one on one drills, Titus Young caught a pass for a touchdown over the head of Berry the proceeded to spike the ball. On the ensuing drive, while not covering Young Berry intercepted a pass and punted the ball away. Each action at the end of the play would’ve earned both players personal foul penalties.
All in all it looks like the Lions are on the right foot to start training camp. Certainly nobody is listed as a starter on this team except for maybe Calvin Johnson, Matthew Stafford and Ndamukong Suh.