As one of the lucky few who get to watch Detroit Lions minicamp, I try my best to paint of picture of each practice via our daily observations recaps, and our Pride of Detroit Direct exclusive video podcasts. But as much as I try to report the most relevant news and biggest plays, nothing compares to actually watching the plays themselves.
Lucky for you, the Lions provided a highlight reel of both minicamp practices this week. Below you can watch the highlights of the best plays on both sides of the ball.
Under the video, I’ll try to provide as much context to each play as my memory allows.
Here’s the video:
Play 1: Jimmy Rolder interception
During a 7-on-7 drill, Lions rookie linebacker Jimmy Rolder dropped into a deep zone and high-pointed the pass thrown by Teddy Bridgewater. Here’s what Rolder had to say about the play:
“Just dropping into my zone, reading the quarterback, made a play on the ball. That’s pretty much it,” Rolder said.
Simple enough.
Play 2: Trevor Nowaske PBU
This was during a full 11-on-11 segment. On a pass from Luke Altmyer, Nowaske, too, dropped into a deep zone coverage and got his fingertips on the ball. The pass was intended for Malik Cunningham, who was open if Altmyer had gotten the ball over Nowaske.
Play 3: Aamaris Brown INT
Bridgewater’s first few looks weren’t open, so he progressed to his third read and hesitated, allowing Brown to close in on running back Jabari Small. Brown’s contact was early, potentially drawing a penalty, but kudos to him for playing through the contract, finding the ball, and taking it the other way.
Play 4: Jackson Meeks touchdown
This play came on Day 2 of Lions minicamp during the situational drill at the end of practice. You can see with a brief shot of the scoreboard that the offense was down 33-24 with 37 seconds left on a third-and-10 from the 12-yard line.
Meeks did a good job creating late separation from linebacker Damone Clark and high-pointed the ball while getting both feet in for the score.
Play 5: Tom Kennedy touchdown
During 11-on-11s for Day 1 of minicamp, Altmyer floated a great ball to Tom Kennedy on the quarterback’s very first play. Roger McCreary was a step late in coverage, and Kennedy ran with it for a 50+ yard touchdown.
Play 6: Jared Goff to Isaac TeSlaa
This happened during 7-on-7s on Day 1 of minicamp. TeSlaa’s late break on his post gave him plenty of separation from Ennis Rakestraw, and Goff delivered a perfect ball before safety help arrived.
Play 7: Amon-Ra St. Brown TD
This was another play from the end-of-game scenario from Day 2 of Lions minicamp. St. Brown ran a beautiful route at the back of the end zone, gaining multiple steps on D.J. Reed, and finding the end zone with 35 seconds left.
Everything else in the video came from individual drills.
