Preseason games can make all the difference for players on the roster bubble. Displaying to a coaching staff that when the lights come on, you can ball out can be one of the most valuable parts of the evaluation process.
And while the Detroit Lions, as a team, did not play well against the Los Angeles Chargers in Thursday’s prseason opener, there were a few players on offense who saw their stock rise and their roster chances increase.
Let’s go through them all in this week’s version of Bubble Watch:
Offense.
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Quarterback:
- Assumed in: Jared Goff
- Hendon Hooker: 11 “IN” votes (no change)
- Kyle Allen: 0 votes (no change)
Despite poor showings from both quarterbacks—and Hooker having by far the worse statistical day—our view of the backup quarterback battles remains the same. With Hooker expected to start on Friday against the Atlanta Falcons, the third-year quarterback has an opportunity to either create distance between him and Kyle Allen, or have our staff reconsider where things currently stand.
Running back:
- Assumed in: Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Craig Reynolds, Sione Vaki
Craig Reynold’s solid preseason performance only further establishes that there isn’t much of a competition in this room.
Wide receiver:
- Assumed in: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Tim Patrick, Kalif Raymond, Isaac TeSlaa
- Dominic Lovett: 11 votes (no change)
- Ronnie Bell: 0 votes (no change)
- Tom Kennedy: 0 votes (no change)
- Jackson Meeks: 0 votes (no change)
- Jakobie Keeney-James: 0 votes (no change)
Dominic Lovett’s preseason game was a mixed bag. He caught five passes, but had a drop, gave away a ball for an interception, and looked hesitant on kick return. But all of that is more than you could say for Detroit’s depth behind him. The other four receivers on Bubble Watch all combined for a single catch, taking some gas out of the hype machine.
Tight end:
- Assumed in: Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright
- Shane Zylstra: 10 votes (no change)
- Kenny Yeboah: 1 votes (no change)
- Zach Horton: 1 votes (up 1)
While Zylstra got the first looks in the preseason game, the other two tight ends had solid showings against the Chargers. Yeboah, while suffering a minor injury, looked sound in his blocking assignments and earned a 71.4 PFF run blocking grade. Horton showed off his versatility as both an in-line tight end and fullback, and didn’t look out of place in either spot.
I think Zylstra came into the game with a healthy lead on the TE3 job, but I sense it’s tightening up.
Offensive tackle:
- Assumed in: Taylor Decker, Penei Sewell, Giovanni Manu
- Dan Skipper: 11 votes (no change)
- Jamarco Jones: 1 votes (up 1)
Interestingly, Dan Skipper played nearly the entire first half of the preseason opener, perhaps seeding some doubt about his roster safety. It certainly doesn’t help that he suffered an injury, but coach Dan Campbell said on Sunday that he’s only expected to be out a week. For that reason, we’ve still got him in.
That said, Jamarco Jones earned a vote this week. He had some good moments as the starting right tackle on Thursday, and he has taken over for Skipper as the first-team left tackle in practice while Taylor Decker eases his way into team drills.
Interior offensive line:
- Assumed in: Graham Glasgow, Tate Ratledge, Christian Mahogany
- Kayode Awosika: 11 votes (up 3)
- Trystan Colon: 5 vote (up 5)
- Kingsley Eguakun: 2 votes (down 4)
- Miles Frazier: 2 votes (no change)
- Colby Sorsdal: 1 vote (up 1)
- Netane Muti: 0 votes (down 5)
- Michael Niese: 0 votes (down 1)
The Lions’ offensive roster bubble saw its biggest changes on the offensive line. After a fantastic showing as the team’s starting right guard, Kayode Awosika is now a unanimous “IN.” Conversely, that has plummeted Netane Muti—the other veteran guard who is arguably fighting Awosika for a roster spot—to zero votes. Muti was actually solid in the game, too, but he was clearly overshadowed by Awosika.
We also saw a significant shift in the backup center battle. Kingsley Eguakun struggled mightily against the Chargers, so he lost four votes this week. Meanwhile, it appears Trystan Colon may have jumped a spot on the depth chart after serving as the backup center in the preseason game and then again in Sunday’s practice. Michael Niese, on the other hand, was down to third-string center during Sunday’s practice—although that may have just been part of their daily rotation.
Finally, Colby Sorsdal—now repping as a full-time guard—was one of the better players on the field against the Chargers. Our staff rewarded him with one vote this week, but the third-year developmental guard has a long ways to go to make his case for the 53-man roster.
More from prideofdetroit.com:
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- Former RB coach: Lions’ Jason Huntley ‘was dynamic wherever we put him’
- Kenny Golladay named a top-10 WR in NFL
- Schedule leak: Lions to host Texans on Thanksgiving
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- Ask POD: Detroit Lions schedule mailbag
