Detroit Lions rookie Derrick Moore was asked to step into a bigger role with D.J. Wonnum injured. He responded with a career-high in pressures and the first two sacks of his NFL career. Head coach Dan Campbell said that was the expectation for the rookie, who was only being held back by a lack of playing time.
“With every rep he’s going to get better,” admitted Campbell. “You know, that’s how he is. And so, the more reps he gets, the better he gets.”
Campbell added that his performance in Week 9 against the Miami Dolphins was just a small dose of what they expect. They drafted Moore 44th overall in the 2026 NFL Draft, so the thought is that he can perform for them.
“He got a pretty good dose today, and he’s improving,” stated Campbell. “That’s important. So, he stepped up for us. D. Moore won today.”
Moore entered the week playing 22% of their defensive snaps. He played a career-high 58% of the snaps this week.
Detroit Lions Have High Expectations for Rookie Derrick Moore
Moore has slowly been eased into his role as a rookie. He played 18 snaps in the first week. That ended up being the most snaps he played before Week 5. Moore played 17 snaps in Week 2, nine snaps in Week 3, and then eight snaps in Week 4. However, they started to ramp him back up after that.
Moore played 20 snaps, which was 27% of the defensive snaps. The next week he played 20 snaps, but 29.9% of the snap share. When Wonnum left with a concussion in Week 8, he was up to 41%. Now, he played more than half of the defense’s snaps for the first time. He rewarded the team.
Moore entered the week with five total pressures and no sacks. He had four pressures and two sacks in Week 9 alone.
Lions Get Major Impact From Moore in Week 9
The question now is how this will impact things after this week. Wonnum missed with a concussion, but the odds are that he will be back in Week 10 and Week 11 at the latest. Moore has not been playing more because Wonnum has been so strong.
Coming into the game, Wonnum had been playing 55% of the team’s defensive snaps. So, Moore slid into the role that Wonnum had. Wonnum has five sacks this season and is looking strong. The Lions are not going to want to bench him when he gets healthy.
At the same time, it would benefit them to see their second-round rookie take a few steps this season. So, they would like him to play more. The Lions take on the New England Patriots in Week 10. It will be interesting to see who plays more and if there is a difference when they take on the Pats.
Dan Campbell Makes Feelings Clear on Lions Rookie