What is the story about?
Wednesday’s practice was originally planned to be a more intense session, potentially even a scrimmage. However, Dan Campbell opted to be smart with the workload after the team was “humming yesterday in a good way,” electing to dial things back for a one-hour practice in shells.
The practice was still competitive, but given its concise nature, limited team periods—with each offense getting only three drives—and lack of full contact, there weren’t a substantial number of notable plays. Throw in a sloppy
number of penalties, and the takeaways from Wednesday should be taken with a pinch of salt.
With that in mind, here are nine somewhat notable standouts—and their rep situations—from Wednesday’s practice.
Offense
- WR Amon-Ra St. Brown — St. Brown broke loose for an impressive 32-yard catch-and-run touchdown over the middle on a fourth down, play-action pass, then opened the end-of-game scenario with a 15-yard reception on a crosser. He was also part of a nearly flawless trick play that converted on fourth down but unfortunately ran out the clock to end the scenario. St. Brown continues to feast in the intermediate middle of the field.
- RB Jahmyr Gibbs — With the practice heavy on play-action and end-of-game situations, there weren’t many opportunities for Gibbs in the run game. But on two of his three carries, Gibbs turned bottled-up outside zone runs into gains of 9 and 8 yards, cutting backside on a dime and weaving through the defense, including past Aidan Hutchinson on one run (Hutchinson beat Blake Miller for a sack on the very next play). Gibbs also added a 7-yard reception near the sideline during the end-of-game scenario while lined up out wide. During warmups, he snagged a rocket from Jared Goff on an angle route that made my eyeballs go full Looney Tunes.
- LG Ben Bartch — Bartch handled the full workload at left guard with both the second- and third-team offensive lines as he’s finally able to get doused in the reps that were originally intended for him. With one competitive practice and the final preseason game remaining, Bartch has an opportunity to earn the coaching staff’s trust as the primary backup at offensive guard.
- WR Tay Martin — Martin is fighting to secure a spot on the 53-man roster and looking to move past his drop in Saturday’s preseason game. He became an outlet for back-to-back Luke Altmyer completions, first on a drag route that Devin White diagnosed well and limited to 6 yards, then on a 17-yard reception over the middle to move the chains after beating Khalil Dorsey in coverage.
Defense
- DE Eric O’Neill — O’Neill feels like he’s pulled ahead of Anthony Lucas as the most likely defensive end to be stashed on the practice squad and followed up his strong training camp with another active practice. He sniffed out a pitch to Sione Vaki for a run stop and later drove Devin Cochran back into Altmeyer, forcing a fluttering incompletion that appeared a split-second away from potentially becoming a forced fumble.
- DL Ben Stille — Another day, another Stille splash play. Stille combined with Amen Ogbongbemiga for a sack of Altmyer that forced the offense into a very long third down. Stille continues to prove his value despite joining the team after training camp began and remains one of Detroit’s biggest roster-bubble decisions.
- LB Malcolm Rodriguez — Rodriguez received all of the third-linebacker reps with the first-team defense Wednesday, while White was relegated to reps with the second team. How that situation is handled during Thursday’s practice, and the final preseason game, will be telling. Rodriguez also delivered a strong block during the 3-on-2 kick-return gauntlet drill that elicited a big reaction from the coaches and players gathered around.
- DB Keith Abney II — Abney received all of the nickelback snaps Wednesday with both the first- and second-team defenses, as the coaching staff appears to be loading him up with reps in preparation for Week 1 with Christian Izien possibly out. Abney also helped end the second-team defense’s end-of-game scenario, generating pressure on a nickel blitz during a 20-plus-yard fourth-down Hail Mary and forcing an inaccurate pass.
- S Aamaris Brown — With several injuries at safety, Brown received all of the first-team reps as the third safety, operating as a half-field deep safety during the obvious passing situations that was the end-of-game scenario. Brown also chased down Jameson Williams on the fourth down trick play, stopping him inside the 10-yard line and short of the goal line.
