The Lions’ rookie class got its first real test in Week 1, and a few names already stood out for very different reasons.
Detroit carried nearly all of its 2026 draft picks on the active roster this offseason, betting on a youth movement that could help right away. Against the New Orleans Saints, that group produced useful tape across the board, even with Derrick Moore and Jimmy Rolder going unused in a shortened week. Moore wasn’t needed much with the way Detroit handled the Saints up front, while Rolder’s path was blocked by a linebacker room and special teams unit that already looked settled.
One of the quieter success stories was tackle Blake Miller. Quiet is good here.
Miller was part of an offensive line that gave up just four pressures and one sack on Jared Goff, and he handled the day without any obvious trouble. No rough penalties, no signs of him getting overwhelmed by New Orleans’ defensive front.
He also showed up on the estimated practice report with a knee injury, but he finished Sunday’s game and didn’t appear limited. The expectation is that Detroit has simply held him out of walkthroughs to get him ready for Thursday night.
That kind of steady work matters for an offense that wants to get moving through the air, and Miller did his part in keeping Goff clean.
The rookie who had the toughest afternoon was cornerback Keith Abney II, and the circumstances were brutal. When Rock Ya-Sin had to leave for a few snaps, Abney was suddenly out there on his own against a Saints receiving group that was causing problems.
He finished with one bad penalty, two tackles, and a tackle for loss, but he also had trouble holding up against New Orleans’ passing game. Still, it’s hard to put much weight on that showing when the whole secondary was battling Tyler Shough, Chris Olave, and Devaughn Vele.
That was a rough spot for any rookie corner to land in.
Up front, though, Detroit got encouraging work from Skyler Gill-Howard in his first NFL game. The sixth-round pick logged three tackles and played mainly in third-down blitz packages, where he fit right in with a defensive front that kept making life miserable for New Orleans. He never became a problem on defense, and for a player who has kept improving since arriving in Detroit, that’s exactly the kind of start the Lions wanted.
Gill-Howard also helped on a play that won’t get much attention because of the sack it set up. He and fellow rookie Eric O’Neill helped occupy a crowd of Saints linemen, giving Aidan Hutchinson the space to work his spin move on Kelvin Banks Jr. and finish the sack.
O’Neill had his own impact, and not just on that snap. He finished with three solo tackles on special teams as a gunner, matching Tay Martin’s three special teams tackles and helping Detroit consistently pin the Saints where it wanted them.
He was relentless in chasing returners, and he also showed up in blitz packages for defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard. Like Gill-Howard, he brought pressure without needing a sack or quarterback hit to make his presence known.
His NFL debut was noticeable.
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The bigger question now is how often that kind of workload can hold up. Dan Campbell acknowledged after the game that what Gibbs took on in the opener may not be something the Lions can ask of him every week, and that leaves Detroit with an immediate depth issue behind him. For a team built to lean on the run, finding a reliable backup plan is no small matter, especially with the season still just getting started. [Read more 🡒]