Getty Dan Campbell coaching the Lions against the Bears in 2021.
The Detroit Lions were competing against the Indianapolis Colts during joint practice on Wednesday, August 17, and another one of their rookies appears to have stepped up.
Safety Kerby Joseph showed his competitive spirit on the field during workouts, and apparently, he was very easy to spot making big plays against the opposition as well.
MLive.com’s Benjamin Raven tweeted about the impact that Joseph had on the field during practice, not being afraid to mix it up while also pulling down an interception.
Lions rookie S Kerby Joseph gets chippy, then nearly picks off Nick Foles before getting an INT on the next snap. Nice little series for him there against Colts second-team offense.
“Lions rookie S Kerby Joseph gets chippy, then nearly picks off Nick Foles before getting an INT on the next snap. Nice little series for him there against Colts second-team offense,” Raven tweeted.
Coming off a solid preseason performance, it’s nice to hear about Joseph stepping up and getting some love. The Lions’ staff isn’t afraid to play rookies or young players, and this could be happening in the chance they are giving Joseph.
Hopefully, he can continue to make the most of his opportunities on the field.
Lions Have Mixed Practice Against Colts
As for how the Lions looked during the first practice against the Colts during the lead up to Week 2 of the preseason, that’s a matter up for debate.
According to The Pat McAfee Show who was live on the scene, Indianapolis “cooked” the Lions on the afternoon, with the first-team offense and quarterback Matt Ryan playing a big role in the domination.
You just COOKED the Detroit Lions @M_Ryan02
McAfee said Ryan barely missed a pass against Detroit’s first-team defense. Obviously, things changed a bit when others were on the field and rotated in and out the rest of the day.
Clearly, there were things to appreciate from a Detroit perspective. The team didn’t back down and the hope is they used the work to get better on the field again for the season to hone their skills.
In the case of Joseph, this seems to be just what played out.
Dan Campbell: Joseph Impressed During Preseason
Regardless of what happened, it’s good to hear the Lions getting their young players some experience, and even better to hear about those players making the most of their opportunities on the field.
Coming into this week, Joseph had already been called out by Detroit coach Dan Campbell for his work. Speaking to the media on Monday, August 15, he was praised for stepping up along with linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez.
2⃣ players that caught Coach’s eye from the #ATLvsDET tape
“I would say Kerby (Joseph) showed up. Didn’t quite know where he was going to be at, or what it was going to look like. We’ve been on his rear in practice, we’ve been pretty hard on him. He’s needed it, but he showed up. The lights came on and he did some things on special teams and defense that were extremely encouraging,” Campbell said to the media. “I would say (Malcolm) Rodriguez didn’t disappoint. He’s got a lot of room for improvement but yet you can tell it’s not too big for him, which is good. I think those are two guys that really kind of come to mind a little bit.”
Hearing that Joseph backed this up with another big play is great news for the Lions. The hope is Joseph can continue to develop and use his experience to gain a foothold within the defense. Already, it seems to be working for Rodriguez.
That’s good news for the potential depth of Detroit’s important 2022 draft class.