Week 1 Training Camp Review: Lions Not Losing Their Identity

Latest Lone Wolves podcast reviews Week 1 training camp takeaways.

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff / Eric Seals / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Detroit Lions have started the acclimation process at training camp, prior to practicing in pads next week.

Training camp for one of the league's fastest rising squads has been about intense competition and setting the early tone for what will be expected on a consistent, daily basis.

Unfortunately, the team is now dealing with the season-ending injury of kicker Michael Badgley, opening the door for Jake Bates to step in and earn the job.

Head coach Dan Campbell set the tone early, when he responded to a question about having success on a more consistent basis.

"We’re not going to lose our identity," said Campbell on the first day of camp. "That is the most important thing to me, and I won't sacrifice it for anyone or anything. I told the team that and they know that.”

Detroit's popular fourth-year head coach indicated the core values of hard work and competition will always be staple of teams he coaches.

"This football team is acting like a championship team where the leaders are pushing the younger players to execute at a very high level. The defense doesn’t want to give an inch to the offense. The offense wants to execute and there’s a lot of chirping," this author noted on the latest Lone Wolves podcast. "Dan Campbell’s squads love to chirp in practice. You have a lot of guys with big egos that want to do a bunch of things. You look at this football team, and it has the feel of a team that wants to be in a championship."

The latest Lone Wolves podcast reviews the main takeaways from the first week of training camp, Jameson Williams' emergence and the ramifications of Badgley missing the 2024 season with a torn hamstring.

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Additional reading

1.) 'Rakestraw's Pretty Instinctive': Rookie CB Shows Off Versatility

2.) Lions K Michael Badgley Suffers Season-Ending Injury

3.) 'Let it Rip': Jack Campbell Wants Lions' Defense to Be NFL's Best

4.) Jared Goff Believes He’s ‘Smack Dab’ in Middle of His Prime