Pride of Detroit
A look at the Detroit Lions’ snap counts vs. the Chargers, and what it may mean for each position battle.
Let’s take a closer look at the Detroit Lions’ personnel decisions in their preseason opener against the Los Angeles Chargers. How Detroit used their players can often be a hint as to where position battles currently lie. So I’m going to break down every position and note both how many snaps each player played, and—perhaps more notably—when those players played.
I wouldn’t read too much into Allen starting the opening game. It was his turn in the rotation to be with the second-team offense after Hooker led that unit during Tuesday’s scrimmage. It’s probably a fair assumption that Hooker will get the honor next week against the Falcons.
Allen got significantly more snaps than Hooker only because the offense was more successful. Both players got a half of football, but Allen managed to lead the offense to 143 net yards, while Hooker’s offense gained just 54.
It was surprising to see so much Craig Reynolds, but with two injured players among the Lions’ depth, they didn’t have much of a choice. For the second half, it was mostly Jabari Small, but recently-signed UFL star Jacob Saylors did get some late work.
If you needed any more assurance that guys like Tim Patrick and Kalif Raymond are likely safe, their healthy scratch on Thursday is a good indication.
Detroit purposely got long looks at their two drafted rookie receivers. Although, TeSlaa was done by halftime after putting up a team-leading 46 yards. Lovett played from beginning to end, and even got work on both punt returner and kick returner.
While the Lions understandably wanted to get their rookie receivers as much work as possible, it can’t be a great sign that veteran Malik Taylor and Ronnie Bell barely got any opportunity to shine.
Zylstra’s day was short after starting the game (alongside Kenny Yeboah). That’s a good indication he still has a strong lead in the...
