Should Expectations Be Lowered for Lions' Rookies?

Examining whether expectations should be lowered for Lions' rookies entering the 2020 season

The Lions enter training camp Tuesday with plenty of questions to answer, after finishing a dismal 3-12-1 and in last place in the NFC North a season ago. 

And on top of all that, the coronavirus pandemic put a huge wrench into the team's offseason, as it did for all 32 of the NFL's franchises.

There was no minicamp, and now, the entire preseason has been scrapped.

The biggest victims of the loss of reps during the two aforementioned customary portions of the offseason: the rookies.

They now need to make up for a significant amount of lost time with their teammates and their respective position groups during training camp.

And it won't be a normal camp this summer in Allen Park, either.

Teams will need to reduce the size of their rosters from 90 to 80 players, and will have two options for doing so, according to a league memo obtained by Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer.

The NFL just sent a memo out to teams. The start details reporting dates and time players can spend at facilities. That’s here. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/vdG8D0dWfb

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) July 25, 2020

And this is the second part of the memo NFL sent to teams this morning. This details the structure of training camp, start to finish. (2/2) pic.twitter.com/i95PZ7RHsi

— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) July 25, 2020

As the memo details, the first option consists of cutting the roster down to 80 players in time for Tuesday. 

Meanwhile, the second option -- the one likely to be chosen by the Lions -- features sticking with all 90 guys and going split-squad until the mandatory cut-down to 80 players date of Aug. 16.

The split-squad course of action would place the veterans on one "team" and the rookies/players going through rehab on another.

This would mean that the first-year pros would be secluded from the rest of the players that comprise their position groups.

Effectively, it would be a disservice to all the individuals participating in their first NFL training camp, as they would benefit from getting work in alongside the veterans at their positions.

Young guys need to be mentored -- from early-round draft picks, all the way down to the undrafted free agents.

For instance, veteran cornerback Desmond Trufant was brought in by general manager Bob Quinn this offseason not only to replace Darius Slay in Detroit's secondary, but also -- and most importantly -- to mentor the organization's 2020 first-round pick Jeff Okudah.

Brett Davis, USA TODAY Sports

Okudah has a chance to be an All-Pro one day. It's why the Lions took the former Ohio State standout corner No. 3 overall.

However, he still needs to learn further about the intricacies of the position from guys, such as Trufant, that have been in the NFL for numerous years. 

Those are the individuals that will help Okudah and other first-year players transition to the league effectively.

So, separating the veterans in the Lions' secondary, which also includes cornerback Justin Coleman and safety Duron Harmon, from Okudah while in training camp definitely puts him at a disadvantage as he gets ready for his first NFL season.

Despite saying that, he'll still have high expectations entering the 2020 campaign.

It comes with the territory of being a top-five draft pick.

The completely virtual offseason caused by the pandemic -- the first of its kind in NFL history -- should allow the expectations for Detroit's first-rounder from this past April to be lowered a bit, though.  

The same can be said for the franchise's entire '20 draft class amid the pandemic -- even for Detroit's second-round selection D'Andre Swift, a talented running back out of Georgia who also comes into the league with high expectations.  

None of the rookies -- just like the rest of the players on each of the NFL's 32 rosters -- got the chance to work out and take part in meetings together during the minicamp portion of the offseason.

Now, there exists the potential for a training camp in which the veteran guys and rookies are separated from each other.

And the actual practices during training camp don't kick off until Aug. 12 -- almost exactly a month prior to the Lions' regular season opener on Sept. 13 against the Bears.

It's an insufficient amount of time for the players to practice leading into their inaugural NFL seasons.

The drastically different offseason, coupled with the craziness of the pandemic and the health hazards associated with it, provides all the reason in the world for the first-year players' expectations to be lowered heading into the upcoming season.