Glenn: Secondary Penalties Are 'Double-Edged Sword'

Can Lions secondary avoid costly penalties moving forward?

Detroit Lions cornerback Carlton Davis III (23). / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Penalties have been an issue for the Detroit Lions secondary throughout the first four games of the 2024 season.

Through the first quarter of the season, Detroit's secondary is tied for the league lead with eight pass interference penalties. Rookie cornerback Terrion Arnold has been flagged five times for this infraction and leads the league, while Carlton Davis is tied-for-second with three.

As a result, improving their consistency in coverage and keeping their hands off receivers is a point of emphasis for the secondary moving forward. With a tough task ahead of them in Week 6 with Cowboys wideout CeeDee Lamb, the Lions will be forced to improve on the fly.

Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn does not want the corners backing down from a physicality perspective. While the unit has been penalized, they also are tied-for-fifth in pass breakups with 24.

"Obviously the penalties that we have. But man, that is a double-edged sword, also, because along with that, I think we're (tied-for-fifth) in the league in pass breakups," Glenn said. "That's something that we've emphasized and I've wanted here for a long time. I know a lot of times that can be back and forth because now, when you're not challenging, you're playing too soft. When you are challenging, you're getting those (penalties). So I'm gonna ride with the fact that our guys are out there challenging, we're gonna continue to do what we do. Now, we're gonna get better at these penalties, also, and our guys know that. We're gonna continue to emphasize that."

As a result, the team is focused on fine tuning technical aspects of coverage moving forward. In particular, Glenn believes the 1-on-1 work that the players do in practice will be beneficial in improving hand usage.

"When you're in thoses situations and you're in a tussle match, where are your hands at? A lot of that comes from guys in college because you're able to do that when you're in college," Glenn said. "That's one of the things that T.A. (Arnold) is doing a really good job on, trying to work on those things. We worked on it in our first day of practice when we came back, and we're gonna continue to work on those things."

Trevor Nowaske helping to fill SAM linebacker void

The Lions placed a high priority on 2023 undrafted linebacker Trevor Nowaske.

Though the Saginaw Valley State product did not make the team initially out of training camp last season, he was retained on the practice squad and eventually promoted to the active roster for a stint.

After Nowaske was waived from the active roster, he was claimed by the Arizona Cardinals and remained with the organization through this year's training camp. However, he was waived by the Cardinals on cut day and the Lions claimed him, bringing him back to where his career started.

Now, with Derrick Barnes out for the foreseeable future with a knee injury, Nowaske has been tabbed as one of the rotational replacements to help fill the SAM linebacker void.

"For us, other guys have to step up. Against Seattle, Alex had to do that job for the most part. He did a good job with that, and then we have Nowaske coming in that's playing the SAM," Glenn said. "Glad we got him back, he's a good body type and he can run. We're gonna continue to put people in those positions to see who can play the best matchups for us. Losing Barnes was huge, but again, we have guys who are gonna continue to work at that and I think they'll do a good job for us."

Nowaske played eight snaps against the Seahawks in Week 4 and had a solid coverage rep. As a result, the Lions are finding ways to keep him involved while understanding he still has room to grow.

"Well, we don't want to put him on Lawrence Taylor role just yet. That was just one game. The thing is, yes, he does open our eyes with some things that he can do," Glenn said. "We've been knowing Nowaske since he's been here, we know what he brings to the table. Hated to lose him the first time, but we're glad we got him back. So we're gonna continue to try to up his role and try to help him be the player we know he can be. But, again, we want to make sure we take that slowly."