The Detroit Lions closed out another busy week of camp Friday with a practice that looked a lot like football, not just football drills. The team ramped up the snap count for some starters and built in scrimmage-style work, giving the offense and defense a chance to trade blows in a setting that felt closer to game day than a typical camp session.
That approach lined up with the early buzz around offensive coordinator Drew Petzing, who has already drawn strong reviews for tailoring his scheme to the roster. Petzing said his view of the Lions was reinforced by what he saw on film while coaching at Arizona.
“I think you see the talent. Elite quarterback play, the skill talent is unbelievable, Penei Sewell at tackle is one of the best in the league," Petzing told ESPN's Kevin Clark.
"The attitude and the culture that Dan’s built here over the last however many years is impressive. We played against them in ’24, it was a boxing match.
It was the most physical game we probably played all season. I think that shows up throughout the tape.”
Detroit was again without several important players. Jahmyr Gibbs continued his acclimation work on the side with tight end Tyler Conklin, while Malcolm Rodriguez and D.J.
Reed were out for the defense. Teddy Bridgewater and Isiah Pacheco also sat for the second straight day.
With the offense and defense facing off in a scored, de facto scrimmage, the first-team offense opened against the backup defense and Jared Goff immediately settled things down. He stacked three third-down conversions, including one to Isaac TeSlaa, who is trying to build momentum after a slow start to camp.
The drive moved into the red zone quickly, but the defense struck first. Goff went to Sam LaPorta in the end zone, only for undrafted rookie linebacker Erick Hunter to recover after initially being beaten and come down with the interception. The Morgan State product, who got praise from special teams coordinator Dave Fipp on Thursday, is starting to look like someone worth watching heading into the preseason opener next week.
Aidan Hutchinson also made his presence felt in a big way. Reports from practice said the EDGE rusher was dominant, piling up multiple sacks and at least one tackle for loss. That TFL came on a good-on-good drive against the first-team offense, and one sack came when he reportedly drove rookie Blake Miller back into the pocket.
His biggest moment didn’t even count. Hutchinson came free off the edge when the offense was backed up inside its own 10-yard line and looked set to record another sack, but the coaches let the play continue. Goff then found Jameson Williams for a 94-yard touchdown.
That play came right after a pass interference flag on the offense, with Williams shoving Ennis Rakestraw down. Rakestraw was in tight coverage on the speedster, a sign that he’s right in the mix for the second starting cornerback job.
Amon-Ra St. Brown kept doing what he always seems to do: produce without making a fuss about it.
He turned in a strong day with several big plays, including a touchdown on fourth-and-goal in a red-zone period against Rakestraw. He finished that series with a two-point conversion in the back corner of the end zone.
The offensive line had a rougher afternoon. Both the first- and second-team units were inconsistent, and the defensive front continued to look sharp. Hutchinson and Alim McNeill were disruptive again, Tyler Lacy added another strong showing, and the offense also dealt with some pre-snap penalties while backed up at its own 1-yard line.
One of the most notable plays for the defense came from another undrafted player. Rutgers product Eric O’Neill recorded a safety after getting past veteran offensive tackle Larry Borom, a moment that clearly rattled the offense enough to draw an animated reaction from Hank Fraley.
Luke Altmyer handled the remaining reps behind Goff with Bridgewater out, and the undrafted quarterback had an uneven day. Anthony Lucas forced him into an intentional grounding after coming free off the edge, though Altmyer did connect with Cedrick Wilson for a first down before a deep throw to Tay Martin fell incomplete.
The final situational period brought more of the same back-and-forth. Starting from their own 31 with the offense down three, Goff hit St.
Brown twice to cross midfield, and a penalty on Nick Whiteside added more yardage after he was reportedly flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct on Jameson Williams. Another defensive penalty pushed the Lions inside the 15, and after an incompletion Goff found St.
Brown again to get to the 1. Jacob Saylors finished the drive by running through Roger McCreary for the touchdown.
Jake Bates also stayed on track, drilling three field goals from beyond 50 yards, with a long of 58.
NFL Network was at practice Friday, with Stacey Dales and Brian Baldinger interviewing Dan Campbell, Jared Goff and Amon-Ra St. Brown. Detroit rapper SadaBaby and comedian Haha Davis were also in attendance and spoke with ESPN after the session.
The Lions now get Saturday off before returning to practice Sunday, when they’ll officially start their first week of game preparation. Their opener comes Thursday against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paycor Stadium.
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