The Pads are On and the Gloves are Off: Day 5/6 Training Camp Notes
Training Camp Days 5/6 Continue Forward
Information sourced from: Tim Twentyman, Detroit Lions Podcast, NFL Transaction Wire, Pro Football Reference, Pride of Detroit
The pads are on, and real football has resumed at the Lions training facilities. I was off spending some much needed time with the wife, but let’s dive in on some of the items from yesterday and today at Lions training camp!
Anthony Firkser - Out for the Season, Lawrence Keys Unknown
Anthony Firkser, reserve TE, suffered a broken bone in his leg yesterday and has been declared out for the season. Per Jeff Risdon of Detroit Lions Podcast this is unfortunate as it appeared he was starting to catch on a little bit, but his Lions reunion will have to wait until next year. Lawrence Keys also suffered a leg injury of unknown severity.
Sione Vaki - Eye and Nose
Yesterday it was widely reported Sione Vaki had an eye injury and had to leave practice. Today it came out that he actually (or also?) has a broken nose. Not a big deal and he should be back relatively quickly. Vaki has been penciled in as RB3 behind Pacheco, but this has opened the field of competition for that spot to the likes of Jacob Saylers and Jabari Small. Speaking of small…
Jabari Small
This is coming largely from Jeff Risdon at Detroit Lions Podcast, but it certainly sounds as though he had a bit of a coming out party with Gibbs sitting out for contract reasons and Vaki recovering from his broken nose. While one day is nothing to go crazy over, perhaps we should consider that Small has more to offer than originally thought.
Day 5 - The Offensive Line Shines
Per multiple sources, it seems like all the offensive line was waiting for was for pads to come on in order to shine. Even with Miles Frazier splitting reps at left guard with Christian Mahogany it sounds as though the line just “clicked” which I think a lot of people were waiting to hear. Given I believe the offensive line was the Lions number one problem last year, this comes as a relief and brings hope that the Lions could truly be making progress towards their previous success.
Day 6 - Christian Mahogany
From a couple sources Mahogany took a greater share of the snaps today, and looked very good in doing so (do yourself a favor and watch Jeff Risdon’s breakdown of his play today, and stay for the rest Lions Camp Notebook for Aug 4th: Winners and Losers). In the video I just linked Risdon explains how Mahogany was able to get down field and make a solid block, which was a knock on him previously. While the left guard competition is far from done, Mahogany may be starting to pull away from the rest I’of the crew
Roster Gymnastics Continue
The Lions have added TE Nick Muse and RB Raheem Blackshear, while also waiving Tarik Black. Muse most recently played for the Minnesota Vikings, where he played an extremely limited amount of snaps and logged only a single catch. Blackshear joins from the Carolina Panthers where he notched 52 carries for 203 yards and 3 Touchdowns (3.9 yards per attempt). While I don’t expect either player to move the needle, you never know this time of year.
Keep an Eye on Hassanein
I have been a Hassanein fan since day one, and by all accounts he is improving quickly. From the sounds of it he is making a strong case to lock up the DE4 role behind Hutch, Moore, and Wonnum. Should he lock that up, and show true improvement, that would be a much improved edge group over last year, and give other teams something to truly be worried about when they face us, not just Hutch.
Reminder: Every Team is Facing Injuries
I have read a ton of reactions about our injuries. I want to remind you that this is happening all over the place right now. For instance, the 49ers have lost Ricky Pearsall for the season. The Bears have lost starting safety Coby Bryant for 8 to 10 weeks. The Panthers have lost Ikem Ekwonu and Taylor Moton (both starting offensive tackles) to a ruptured patellar tendon and a blood clot. I’m not saying don’t be worried about our injuries, just that they are literally happening everywhere, and this is not the Lions being disproportionately affected. My advice for all Lions fans is to wait a bit before we sound the bell that the Lions are disproportionately injury prone again.