'You Felt Growth': Dan Campbell Quickly Learning About Sione Vaki

Lions rookie running back had stellar performance against Chiefs.

Detroit Lions running back Sione Vaki (33). / Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The Detroit Lions may have to find more opportunities to utilize the skillset of rookie running back Sione Vaki.

Against the Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit's fourth-round pick secured four receptions for 60 yards and carried the football six times for 22 yards.

His growing confidence and abilities on special teams make him a virtual lock to make the roster.

The preseason has provided the former Utah Utes safety/running back opportunities to expand his repertoire as a running back.

After defeating the Chiefs, head coach Dan Campbell was asked if Vaki has showcased to the coaching staff he needs to be more involved in the offense.

🚨 @sione_vaki YAC alert 🚨#DETvsKC | 📺 Lions TV Network pic.twitter.com/l8A4xjhKcc

— Detroit Lions (@Lions) August 17, 2024

"I would say, the more and more you learn about a player, the faster you figure out what they can do, the better off it is for everybody. Because we already felt like this kid is going to have the ability to play special teams," said Campbell. "So now it's like, can you use him on offense? Is there a place? He's a lot further along in that part of the game (passing) than he is just carrying the football. A lot of that is because he really hasn't done it. Taking the carries, the vision of the play, the cuts, the reads, all of that.

"But the pass game, I thought he stepped up. He's another guy that's in that boat, man, the two minute drive at the end of the game. Wow. That was huge," Campbell continued. "He was making play after play, and he's tired, and he keeps going. He keeps pushing himself through it."

In a surprising moment, Vaki even had his whole face mask ripped off, which stunned Detroit's fourth-year head coach.

"At one point, his whole facemask just gets ripped off, which I don't even know how that's possible. What kind of equipment are we? We're in the NFL," said Campbell. "It's just laying on the ground. You felt growth today from him as well."

Part of a player's job is to make decisions difficult for the coaching staff. With his steady progress and early productivity, Vaki is making a case to be more involved in the Lions' offense when the season starts in a couple of weeks.

"When he came into the building, he had maybe watched all of our tape, just about 80% of our schemes," said running backs coach Scottie Montgomery. "And he had personally drew all of them out versus different coverages, versus different fronts. He didn’t know the name of it, he just knew the technical side of it."

Lions rookie Sione Vaki had quite the helmet malfunction 😳 His facemask got removed during a play pic.twitter.com/vKww3omziE

— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) August 17, 2024