The Detroit Lions changed things up for Day 14 of training camp, practicing Monday night in preparation for the primetime games they’ll play this season. The team also shifted into a full scrimmage format, playing four, nine-minute quarters with a scoring system that pitted the first-team offense and second-team defense against the second-team offense and first-team defense.
Both defenses controlled the action early, forcing multiple three- and four-and-outs before the first-team offense eventually
found some footing. That side ultimately pulled away for a 24-7 victory.
The scrimmage produced several notable performances, with many of the day’s biggest standouts coming on defense—particularly along the defensive line. After practice, Juice Scruggs admitted to Pride of Detroit that his unit’s performance, especially in the first half, “wasn’t up to the offensive line’s standard.”
With that in mind, here are my biggest standouts from Monday night’s scrimmage.
CB Ennis Rakestraw
Just as many Lions fans were beginning to count him out, Monday’s scrimmage was arguably one of Ennis Rakestraw’s most effective performances in a Lions uniform.
He looked much more like the confident and healthy Missouri version of himself, playing with the physicality and versatility that once made him such an intriguing defensive back. Rakestraw worked primarily with the second team at nickel while also receiving some snaps at outside cornerback with the first-team defense.
Within the second-team offense’s first two unsuccessful drives, Rakestraw recorded a tackle for loss and tipped pass on corner blitzes, delivered a heavy thud on a Jacob Saylors run for no gain, forced another third-down incompletion, and capped off the stretch with an interception, aided by a strong play by Christian Izien.
A few drives later, Rakestraw added another pass breakup on a slant intended for Malik Cunningham. Then, working with the first team, he closed quickly on a short pass to Tyler Conklin and popped the tight end and sent him packing for a minimal gain.
Rakestraw wasn’t perfect. Tom Kennedy got the better of him twice, including for a touchdown near the goal line, but Rakestraw was in tight coverage on several other incompletions. Still, it was an impressive response for Rakestraw. After practice, he noted that the preseason opener was good for him because it felt like getting his first SEC game out of the way all over again.
DL Alim McNeill, Tyleik Williams & Aidan Hutchinson
Alim McNeill is starting to round back into the form that once prompted Dan Campbell to give him a litany of nicknames, including “Twinkle Toes.”
Outside of Rakestraw, McNeill was arguably the most disruptive defender on the field. He made life difficult for Juice Scruggs, Seth McLaughlin, and Christian Mahogany, repeatedly muddying the pocket for Jared Goff and eliminating rushing lanes for Jahmyr Gibbs and Sione Vaki.
There were at least half a dozen plays that could have resulted in sacks or tackles for loss in a full-contact setting but weren’t whistled dead in order to allow the play to continue. McNeill’s strength on the front side and quick penetration ability from the backside were both on full display.
On many of the negative plays created by the first-team defense, it felt like McNeill and Tyleik Williams were competing as two burly Bash Brothers to see who could reach the backfield first. Whether it was a tackle for loss, pressure, or drawing a hold, the two-man demolition crew consistently made things difficult inside, with Williams creating problems at the point of attack for both Scruggs and McLaughlin.
Hutchinson wasn’t quite as disruptive as the two defensive tackles, but he was consistently active on the other side of the line of scrimmage, generating pressure that forced several checkdowns and incompletions.
If this highly invested trio of defensive linemen continues trending the way it has throughout training camp, it could start determining the outcomes of games this fall.
DL Ahmed Hassanein
It’s starting to sound like a broken record having Ahmed Hassanein among my standouts, but he continues to make it unavoidable.
Hassanein was once again active around the football with his high-effort intensity and movement skills. The Lions frequently utilized him on twists, slicing through the offensive line, while also deploying him inside in pass-rush situations to create mismatches against guards.
Hassanein generated a handful of sacks or pressures against Luke Altmeyer and Josh Dobbs, often converging with other defensive linemen for a rendezvous at the quarterback alongside players like Anthony Lucas and Chris Smith.
WR Amon-Ra St. Brown
While the first-team offense started slowly, it eventually found some rhythm by partially running the offense through point-forward Amon-Ra St. Brown, who feasted on some usual weapons of choice: slants, outs, and crossers.
St. Brown is wired differently and appeared particularly amped up by the scrimmage setting. There was plenty of jawing between the offense and defense—including players and coaches—and one St. Brown reception even ended with him tossing the ball toward Kelvin Sheppard.
His most memorable play may not have been a catch at all. St. Brown delivered an aggressive pancake block on Thomas Harper, burying the safety into the turf in a collision that closely resembled a loose-cannon wheelbarrow flipping over downhill.
Quick Hitters
- DE Eric O’Neill — Building off his strong preseason performance, O’Neill displayed excellent awareness by sniffing out a screen pass near the opponent’s 10-yard line, snatching Josh Dobbs’ attempt behind the line of scrimmage, and quickly taking it to the crib for a pick-six.
- DL Ben Stille — Look out, Aidan Hutchinson, the Lions might have a new closer. Stille recorded two extremely timely sacks while lined up at nose tackle. He first brutishly worked through Michael Niese to end the first half before ending the entire scrimmage by bringing down Luke Altmeyer on third-and-18 despite being the lone interior defensive lineman with nobody aligned in either B-gap.
- DL Levi Onwuzurike — As Onwuzurike continues to ramp back up, he likely recorded his heaviest overall workload of any practice this summer and saw extended snaps with the first-team defense. He showed off his strength with multiple overpowering run stuffs throughout the scrimmage.
- RB Sione Vaki — Mangled eye and all, Vaki received the only running back touches behind Jahmyr Gibbs with the first-team offense and made the most of them. His best came on a run to the right just outside the red zone, where he followed his blockers toward the sideline, turned upfield, and eventually pulverized through Avonte Maddox on what initially appeared to be a long touchdown before he was ruled back out at the 9-yard line.
- LB Jack Campbell — The defensive line in front of Campbell made so many plays that opportunities rarely reached him, but he still flashed throughout the night. Campbell recorded a strong run stop of Vaki at the line of scrimmage, tossed Blake Miller aside on another run, and broke up a short pass intended for St. Brown over the middle.
- LB Devin White — White remains a problem when attacking downhill. He recorded one would-be sack of Altmeyer on a blitz before later coming off the edge on the left side, railroading Jahmyr Gibbs, and finishing with a definitive sack.
- DB Keith Abney II — Abney received the most snaps of any player as the first-team nickel, with Sheppard frequently sending him on blitzes. He also stuck to St. Brown like glue on a third-and-long slant that fell incomplete.
