East Rutherford, N.J. – The Detroit Lions didn’t get the score they wanted on the scoreboard in their 14-3 loss to the New York Giants in their first game of their preseason on Thursday, but there were still some performances that head coach Dan Campbell was pleased with.
“As always, you gather a lot of information in these preseason games and this was the first one. You want to see how they react in a game like this,” Campbell said after the game.
“I would say we learned a lot with some of the guys and I just told them that here, as long as you want it and you’re willing to work, you don’t tank over mistakes, you improve, you listen to the coaching and you work on it and you grow.”
Despite the loss, there were some players who played well. Here are five players who particularly caught my eye on Thursday night:
1. Defensive player Brodric Martin
Last season was a developmental year for Martin, who comes from Western Kentucky. The team was excited about his size (6’5″, 300 pounds) and potential, but knew he was more of a project as a small school prospect. Martin played in just three games as a rookie and recorded three tackles.
He is expected to play a much larger role in year two after adding muscle and improving some technical stuff during the offseason. The signing of new defensive line coach and run game coordinator Terrell Williams, who has a proven track record of developing talent along the DL, has been a big help for Martin.
He’s been doing some drills with the first-team defense in training camp, especially with DJ Reader still recovering from an injury, and he looked much more prepared to contribute. Martin was tied for the team lead with four tackles Thursday night, and also contributed half a sack and two passes defended. If he continues to develop good padding and technique, he could be a wild card in Detroit’s defensive rotation this season.
