'Go Eat': James Houston Will Be More Involved in Lions' Defense

James Houston will have an opportunity to develop the final six games of the 2022 NFL season.

James Houston caught the attention of Detroit's coaching staff and front office with his performance against the Buffalo Bills. 

The team was looking to get the young defensive lineman into the lineup sooner, but various injuries and different matchups prevented him from debuting sooner. 

Given only five defensive snaps against the Bills, Houston secured two sacks and showcased why the team took a chance on drafting a player coming out of Jackson State. 

“We found a spot in a hurry for that. Well, I think anytime you’re a young guy and you have these -- you have this idea in your head of what you can be, right, what you’re going to do the first time you step on the field," said Dan Campbell. "It doesn’t always work that way, but I think for him, for five snaps, I think it went about the way he thought it was going to go. 

"There is something about him as a rusher, and he’s -- every week just gotten better and better. He’s put in the work, which is a credit to him," Campbell commented further. "He’s going against some damn good tackles every week. Our guys (Penei) Sewell and (Taylor) Decker, and so certainly that helps his confidence. I think what it does it just tells him, ‘I do, I’ve got the ability to play in this League.’ And I think he’s figured that out soon. Now, that’s just, ‘Hey, go eat.’ You put him out there and just say, ‘Go.’ He’s got to be able to do more for us than just that and it’s got to be more than just five reps. But certainly, we’re going to get him more involved.”

Junfu Han, USA TODAY NETWORK

After his performance against the Bills, the talented defensive lineman was signed to the active roster, avoiding being signed off by another team off the practice squad, similar to quarterback Tim Boyle. 

On Wednesday in the locker room, Houston told ESPN, "He (Brad Holmes) was saying 30 other teams was probably gonna be calling about me. I was upset we lost, but I was happy with my performance." 

Moving forward, Houston will have the opportunity to see more playing time, potentially even in critical moments on third down. 

"The limited role he had last week, it will be expanded on again this week in pass rush situations," defensive line coach Todd Wash told reporters. "We really like his ability to lean and bend and get off the edge. I've seen that on the first sack he had. He got chipped and then he got underneath the right tackle. That's just pure athleticism. We knew that, you know, when we drafted him that we were going to get a really good athlete. So, you know, we'll continue to give him more and more within our package. 

"The biggest thing is on third down. Obviously, our package grows on third down. We don't do a lot on first and second down. We've changed that back the last six or seven weeks, where we didn't do a lot, but on third down we do a lot. We got to limit the package a little bit, just to make sure that he knows exactly what he needs to do. When he does that, he plays extremely fast and that's our responsibility."

In his only season at Jackson State, Houston secured 70 tackles, 24.5 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks, seven forced fumbles, and an interception. 

Drafted in the sixth round of the 2022 draft, the 24-year-old has worked all season learning and developing on the team's practice squad. 

Detroit's offensive linemen, having to deal with his high motor and willingness to battle on a daily basis, suggested to the coaching staff it was time to allow Houston to showcase his skills on the active roster. 

Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn indicated, when asked how Houston could build off of his debut performance, that he wanted the rookie to keep learning and growing as a player.

"I think we know that he's a he's a good pass-rusher. There's a lot of other things that go into it to be a good football player," said Glenn. "Here's the deal with this, and I know you've got him out to be the next Lawrence Taylor. But man, this player has skill. He still has a ways to go. And we're going to make sure we protect him from himself and from all of this -- everybody out there just trying to do all the hype right now. And that's our job is to make sure we we give him the best chance to be the best football player he can be. And that's what we're going to do."