The Detroit Lions are back at the Allen Park Performance for another Thursday practice, and this one comes after a scheduled walkthrough. The session will be held in front of fans as the team continues through 2026 training camp.
One of the biggest items to watch is the health of linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez. Head coach Dan Campbell is expected to provide an update after Rodriguez left practice early on Tuesday morning to be evaluated for an ankle injury.
Detroit also continues to work new linebacker Devin White into the mix. The Lions signed White to bring added competition to a linebacker room that already turned in a productive 2025 season, and defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard was recently asked about what it means to add a player with the kind of experience the 28-year-old brings.
White’s arrival isn’t a surprise to anyone who has followed the Lions in recent years. He had been tied to Detroit by pundits for a while because of the early success he had with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“It just backs up everything Dan (Campbell) spoke of this offseason that we are going to find the best 90 to come in here and compete. It's all about competition," said Sheppard.
"We have the chance to acquire somebody that we feel like can come in, whether that's push to start or push guys in the room to make them. The urgency's real this year.
It's not just lip service. And, that's what we did.
"The front office and Dan do a great job going out and it's nonstop. It's always evolving," Sheppard added further.
"How can we get better? How can we improve?
And like I said, it's not just, 'Oh, go out and get this flash guy.’ No.
How can we improve the competitive depth situation right now as far as training camp is concerned? And, Devin definitely does that with his championship pedigree.”
Sheppard also made clear that Detroit’s defense is built to keep adjusting as the summer unfolds.
"Plug and play is how we've built this system," said Sheppard. "The staff has done an unbelievable job. Assisting has been all hands on deck and we feel like we've built something that's adaptable and adjustable as we transition throughout the course of this season.”
Follow along with Lions On SI for highlights and updates from Thursday morning’s practice.
In Other News...
Isaac TeSlaa Faces An Early Camp Test In Crucial Year 2
Isaac TeSlaa is spending training camp trying to turn a strong rookie season into a bigger role for the Lions, and the focus right now is less on highlight plays than on the finer points of his craft. Detroit wants him to expand his route tree and sharpen his technique, the kind of work that can separate a promising young receiver from one who is ready for a larger share of the offense.
Dan Campbell said TeSlaa has run into some of the usual growing pains that come with those adjustments, but the coach made it clear the team sees this as part of the development curve rather than a setback. Campbell likened it to refining a golf swing, the sort of thing that only gets better through repetition, and TeSlaas next step will be showing that the work in practice can carry over once the games start to matter again. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Camp Still Leaves Big Questions About Who's Really Ready
Detroits seventh camp practice came with the kind of heat that can turn a routine August session into a test of endurance, and several players were left managing their workloads because of it. The Lions had a mix of limited participation and absences as the temperature and a handful of injuries shaped the day, with the staff clearly taking a cautious approach rather than forcing anyone through a long workout.
Jahmyr Gibbs was back on the field, but his return still stopped short of full participation, and Tyler Conklin also rejoined the mix after coming off the PUP list. Even so, both were handled carefully as the team eased through walkthrough work and individual periods, leaving their next step in camp as the more interesting question than simply whether they were present at all. [Read more 🡒]