Why Detroit Lions finally targeted veteran know-how for secondary in NFL free agency
Michael Brockers was that guy in the defensive line room. Alex Anzalone has been him for the linebackers.
But for the past two seasons, as the Detroit Lions rebuilt their defense from scratch, they never had a veteran do-right leader to help bring along their secondary.
“One of the things that Brad (Holmes) and I wanted to do was, I thought it was always important to have, you really wanted a veteran guy that certainly, man, they understand what it’s supposed to look like and can kind of lead the group,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said during June minicamp. “Kind of a coach that’s really a player for you. Alex does that in that room. That’s what Brockers was for us. A number of these guys, and we never quite got that in the secondary and I wish we’d have done that because I just think it just helps the whole room. It kind of teaches you, and that’s really what we’ve got now.”
The Lions signed a trio of veteran defensive backs this offseason to add experience and leadership to a secondary that has been a weak link two years.
Cam Sutton played six NFL seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers before signing with the Lions in March. Emmanuel Moseley started most of the past four seasons for the San Francisco 49ers after making the roster as an undrafted free agent in 2018. And C.J. Gardner-Johnson made the Super Bowl last year with the Philadelphia Eagles and, like Anzalone, got his start in a defense similar to the one the Lions run.
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Gardner-Johnson and Anazlone were teammates with the New Orleans Saints in 2019-20, when Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn was the team’s secondary coach.
“There’s a reason why we went and got Cam Sutton," Campbell said. "There’s a reason why we got Moseley. There’s a reason why we got C.J. They certainly upgrade us production wise, but also, they’re football guys and they fit everything that we’re about. The way they go about their business, they’re veteran guys, they got skins on the wall, they come from winning programs and they just play the game the right way.”
Sutton took first-team reps at outside cornerback this spring, and Gardner-Johnson took first-team reps at slot corner. Both are penciled in as starters in what will be a new-look secondary this fall.
Moseley should join them in the starting lineup at some point, though he has sat out organized team activities and mandatory minicamp while rehabbing the torn ACL he suffered last fall.
New Lions cornerbacks coach Dre Bly said he was struck by the professionalism of Sutton and Moseley this spring and noted Moseley was one of a small handful of veterans who stayed in town for the final week of OTAs after Campbell excused most.
Moseley took some first-team walk-through reps at cornerback this spring and is expected to compete with Jerry Jacobs for the starting job once healthy.
“He’s anxious man,” Bly said. “He was a pretty daggoone good player out there in San Fran. He’s from North Carolina, went to Tennessee, played with Cam, so those guys are kind of wired the same and so just to see his fire to get back on the field, his commitment to working and rehabbing, it tells you about the man. When most guys are traveling and vacationing, he’s here working to make sure he’s ready when we come back to camp. So I’m excited to have a chance to work with him. I think he brings a tremendous amount of leadership and experience to our room and can’t wait to see what comes from that.”
Amon St. Brown's next step
Amon St. Brown has the eighth most receptions in the NFL (196) over the past two seasons, and could be primed for a bigger 2023.
He has said he wants to become more of a deep threat in his third season, and Lions receivers coach Antwaan Randle El said he has seen subtle growth from St. Brown that could help him in his quest.
"He can get in and out of cuts so easily, like he doesn’t have to give all that extra stuff cause he can just get out of it so fast," Randle El said last week. "So I just want (him) to just run that smooth route. Like, you don’t have to give any extra at the top of it, just, pop-pop, come on out of it and he’s been doing it in OTAs so that’s been a growth for him. So no extra movement, just get in the route, come out of it because he gets in the route so fast."
St. Brown, averaging 10.6 yards per catch for his career, saw a tick up in numbers last season after he became more formidable with the ball. He broke five more tackles last season than he did as a rookie, and averaged slightly more yards after the catch (4.9 vs. 4.7 as a rookie).
The only receivers with more catches the past two years are Justin Jefferson (236), Tyreek Hill (230), Davante Adams (223), Cooper Kupp (220), Stefon Diggs (211), Travis Kelce (202) and Chris Godwin (202).
"A lot of it for him is the YAC, (and that's) reading those coverages over and over again," Randle El said. "And he got so much better at it last year and you saw that jump, so now it’s like, 'All right, I kind of got it down, how can I perfect it over and over again, as it relates to where I need to be, when I need to be there.' And that’s working back and forth with (Jared) Goff and knowing the coverages and seeing it."
UDFA watch
Cornerback Starling Thomas V played well enough this spring that he appears poised to challenge for a roster spot come training camp. He's not the only undrafted rookie to catch coaches' eyes.
Glenn referenced UDFA defensive linemen Cory Durden and Chris Smith as "guys (that) may help us" this fall, and Lions defensive line coach John Scott Jr. was pleased with both players' performance in OTAs.
"Yeah, I’ve been very impressed with those two big inside guys that we brought in," Scott said. "Very impressed with those guys."
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Smith, who starred Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook-Kingswood, played his first four seasons at Harvard before transferring to Notre Dame last season, where he made five starts and had 17 tackles.
"When you watch Chris’ tape, Chris is a technician, man," Scott said. "He does some things naturally that we don’t even have to coach here as far as like block recognition, block destruction. It comes to him very natural. He learned that at Notre Dame and that has served him well. He’s done a nice job since he’s been out here, too. He’s kind of a quiet guy a little bit, so you got to prod him. But he’s a great guy and he works his tail off, just always trying to go that extra mile and do it exactly how you want it. Very coachable kid. He’s been a pleasure to have in the room so far."
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Why Detroit Lions targeted veteran know-how for secondary
