Several Lions Defensive Players Return to Practice

McNeill, Branch among those in action at Thursday practice.

Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch (32) / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions returned to the practice field ahead of their Monday Night Football showdown against Seattle.

Among the players not participating during practice on Thursday were Frank Ragnow, Ifeatu Melifonwu, Dan Skipper and Sam LaPorta, who was running with a trainer on the side.

Defensive tackle Alim McNeill and safety Brian Branch were both in action after suffering injuries against Arizona in Week 3. McNeill was dealing with a shoulder injury, while Branch was in concussion protocol.

Cornerback Ennis Rakestraw was also in action at practice after missing the last two games with a hamstring injury, while linebacker Alex Anzalone was out there after missing last week with a concussion.

Ragnow has already been ruled out for the game, while Melifonwu has missed each of the first three games.

Alim McNeill
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The Lions are putting an emphasis on 1-on-1 competition this week. Whether it be in pass coverage between receivers and defensive backs, or up front with protection schemes, the Lions are aiming to refocus on their fundamentals ahead of Week 4.

Campbell emphasized that the team is attacking with a narrow focus centered on Seattle rather than a big picture look for the upcoming game.

“No, I don’t think this is any, there’s nothing that’s — as a matter of fact, I told the team everything is about one this week. It’s about one," Campbell said. "That’s today, one day. It’s about one rep, it’s one week, it’s one game, it’s one win. Just focus on that. Again, we’ve got to get back to honing our craft a little bit. We’re gonna do some 1-on-1’s, pad them up early and then take them off. But just so we get back in the, you start getting into game plan four weeks and you start focusing so much on the plan, the plan, sometimes you forget about your fundamentals. You don’t mean to — so this is a way to refocus ourselves.”