Observations: Punches Fly at Detroit Lions Practice

Detroit Lions practice gets very chippy on Day 8 of training camp.

The Detroit Lions coaching staff is hopeful the increased competition among the offensive and defensive units will drastically aid the improvement of the roster. 

“Brad (Holmes) actually calls it ‘the putting greens,’ particularly for the receivers, DBs, because it’s -- you can argue that the offense should win every time because they got the whole field. I mean he can just run -- we try to limit that," Dan Campbell said earlier this week. "But really, it’s just a chance to, ‘Hey man, focus on it’s man-to-man, your first step, your hand placement, you’re running into the hip.’ If I’m a receiver at the top of the break, body lean, all those things it just -- it gives you a chance to really, really focus on that stuff. I do think it’s a harder drill obviously for a defender than it is offensive player, but it’s good to do. ... We’ll do in our one-on-one, we’ll do like two-on-two stacks, so it’s man-to-man, but you’ve got to work your stacks. That’s really more I think beneficial because now they’re having to play off of that stuff, but yet still play man-to-man. But at least we’ll get it implemented. Now I’ll say this, one-on-one with your tight ends, halfbacks, linebackers, safeties, like that’s big because we can get some protection work one-on-ones. Then you get right into the routes, which is good.”

After 40 up-downs with defensive players and a member of the coaching staff, Day 8 began at the team's Allen Park practice facility. 

Things began to get a little chippy early in the day, as one-on-one tackling drills set the stage for what was to come later in practice. 

The first scuffle broke out between defensive lineman Austin Bryant and offensive lineman Dan Skipper. Bryant launched a swinging punch and in came Logan Stenberg, who grabbed a helmet and tossed it away like a bowling ball away from the scrum. 

The coaching staff just settled everybody down and went on the next rep following the skirmish. Nobody was kicked out of practice for the couple of skirmishes that took place. 

"Man, it's just football," Austin Bryant said. "People competing. Emotions get the best of you sometimes. When we walk into that building, we are all brothers. I won't take too much heat into that.

"I just saw red. Tempers flare. You know, those guys compete. They get paid just like me. Man, when we get going and we're going at it, as iron sharpens iron, so does one man sharpen another, that is what we are out here doing." 

Amon-Ra St. Brown is another player who will not shy away from some physical battles, especially with opposing defensive backs. 

On Thursday, St. Brown and cornerback Amani Oruwariye got into it, as the intensity level of practice was quit elevated all morning 

"Really good. It just means that we're in the heart of the camp," Halapoulivaati Vaitai said. "Second week, I don't even know what day it is. But yeah, it's just a bunch of frustration with each other and we just let it all out. We're a bunch of grown men. We know how to handle it. So, it's good. It's good to see them do that."

Day 8 Observations

1.) Officials were present at Allen Park for the first time. During red zone drills, Blough tossed an incomplete pass to wideout Josh Johnson. Duce Staley, Antwaan Randle El and Ben Johnson chided the sideline official for not making the holding call. Detroit's new offensive coordinator demonstrated some competitive fire, as he asked the official what he was out on the field for if the calls were not going to be made. 

2.) Jared Goff had a solid day tossing the football. More deep chances were taken and Detroit's signal-caller wowed the crowd early with a deep toss that connected with Kalif Raymond with cornerback Mike Hughes in coverage. He even flashed some personality, as he dunked the football through the uprights after a quarterback sneak into the end zone. He even displayed some fiery anger, yelling an expletive in anger loudly when he tossed an incompletion to St. Brown with A.J. Parker in coverage. 

3.) David Blough saw work on the second-team on Thursday. One of his best tosses was a deep completion to Trinity Benson, beating Mark Gilbert. 

4.) Rookie cornerback Chase Lucas saw work for the first time with the first-team defense. The young defensive back is likely going to spend the plethora of his rookie season focusing on special teams along with developing as a cornerback in Aaron Glenn's defensive scheme. 

5.) Ifeatu Melifonwu secured an interception on a tipped football tossed by Blough. The young defensive back gave his explanation of the play when asked by AllLions following practice. "Basically, I was kind of like, we were in the red zone. I was the free safety and I'm really supposed to just help on anything in breaking. And basically nothing came immediate. I think Kalif (Raymond) ran a return. Nothing came immediately to me. And then I just read the quarterback and I kind of off his eyes, drifted back. And then the dig came right behind me and I snagged it." 

6.) The coaching staff continues to remain engaged and display high energy all throughout practice. Antwaan Randle El gave Tom Kennedy a big hug after an over the shoulder catch for a touchdown in the end zone tossed by Boyle. Duce Staley is among the most vocal coaches, even on special teams blocking drills. He coached up second-year running back Jermar Jefferson during a special teams period. 

7.) The reception of the day was made by wideout DJ Chark, who is steadily making plays as each day progresses at camp. Here is how the sequence went with the first team Lions offense during a one-minute drill. Starting at the 42-yard line with less than a minute, Goff was sacked for a loss of seven yards. On 2nd-and-17 with 18 seconds remaining, Goff tossed a laser to Chark, who sprawled out and dove for the touchdown grab, beating DeShon Elliott. Blough was able to secure a first-down during his turn at the drill, but would have been intercepted had the whistle not been blown due to solid play of the defensive line on 2nd-and- 10 from the 30-yard line with nine seconds remaining. 

8.) Players who stood out include Austin Bryant, who was flying all over the field and Demetrius Taylor, who is finding his way into the backfield on a daily basis. Look for the young defensive lineman to continue to develop over the course of the next few weeks. Another player who quietly goes about his business is Kalif Raymond. The speedy wideout is a professional who handles his business daily and makes plays, wherever he is asked to lineup. 

9.) Weather may have played a factor, but the crowd was half full at the team's practice facility. 

10.) Based on the kicking order, Austin Seibert may have the ever so slight edge in the battle over Riley Patterson. This battle will be one to watch over the next few weeks.