Most of Detroit's established starters sat out of its preseason opener as the team fell to Cincinnati, 16-14. In contrast, the Bengals opted to play star quarterback Joe Burrow and several other veterans for two series.
As Dan Campbell had indicated before its date at the Bengals, the Lions intend to treat its second 2026 preseason date as a good opportunity to play a number of their starters.
"I’ve kind of already done that a little bit," Campbell said on Monday when asked when he would make his mind up on the plan for his starters against the Washington Commanders on Saturday. "I’m not going to tell you guys, but not everybody will play. I would tell you that. We are going to play a significant amount of the starters. That’s my plan right now."
It's in line with what Campbell said about his starters before its preseason date at Cincinnati.
"(Washington) was kind of where I always targeted like, alright, this may be where we need to play our guys. That’ll be the first one. That’s kind of where I was thinking," Campbell said before its preseason opener at the Bengals.
Saturday now becomes the first extended opportunity to evaluate Detroit's starting units in game action. Historically, Campbell has been cautious with established starters during preseason play. But, after nixing joint practices, Campbell had indicated throughout this offseason that Detroit's starters could see more preseason snaps.
Beyond getting starters acclimated to game speed, the matchup with Washington could provide an important test for an offense transitioning with first-year offensive coordinator Drew Petzing. Training camp has been an adjustment period for Jared Goff and for the Lions' offense, making any preseason snaps valuable before Detroit turns attention to the regular season.
Kickoff is set for noon ET between the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders for their NFL preseason date from Ford Field on Saturday, Aug. 22.
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This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Lions discuss plan for starters in NFL preseason date vs. Commanders
