![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="439" width="780" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
The Detroit Lions continue to scour the market for depth during training camp, and they found some ahead of practice on Friday, August 6.
So far, the team’s defensive line has been the subject of most of the juggling in camp. A few days after the Lions released edge rusher Reggie Gilbert, the team revealed that they were set to fill his slot on the roster with yet another defender for the trenches.
The latest Lions news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Lions newsletter here!
The Lions announced they had signed free agent nose tackle Miles Brown to the roster. Brown doesn’t have a long NFL pedigree, but he does have the right age for the team, considering he is only 23 years old right now.
Interestingly enough, Brown also comes with an intriguing distinction for the Lions. The lineman is a former high school running back, which Chris Burke of The Athletic pointed out following news of his arrival to the team.
Detroit seems to have a type for the interior of their line, and it revolves around nimble players who can move and be light on their feet. Rookie defensive tackle Alim McNeill shares the same pedigree with Brown given he was also a runner in high school, and early on, he’s used that to his advantage in camp to impress with his quickness.
Brown has a long way to go to crack a deeper roster, but it will be interesting to see if he can use his quickness to his advantage in the trenches for Detroit.
Brown’s Stats and College Highlights
Brown cracked the league as an undrafted free agent out of Wofford back in 2019, but he hasn’t made much of a splash in the NFL to this point. Brown hasn’t registered a single NFL stat, but he has hung around a couple of NFL camps. Out of college, he cracked the Cardinals roster in 2019 and played in three games, but ended up being waived and signed to the practice squad. From there, Brown joined the Tennessee Titans in November 2020 following a September release in Arizona, and he stayed with the Titans until January 2021, when he became a free agent.
In college at Wofford, Brown was fairly productive, putting up 173 total tackles, 14 sacks and 79 tackles for-loss.
In terms of Brown’s game on tape, he shows a bit of an ability to press the pocket, as this clip from college displays:
That’s the kind of thing Brown will have to do in order to crack the Lions and make a big impression on what is a deep defensive line group.
Lions Defensive Line Looking Deep for 2021
If there was a spot on the Detroit roster that should have been primed for some sort of upgrade this offseason, it was the defensive line. The Lions lacked depth in the middle, but adding Levi Onwuzurike and Alim McNeill will help that in a big way. The deeper the Lions get in the middle of the line, the better off they will be in terms of getting better presence on the outside as well as depth.
If Onwuzurike was to be able to become a star, that would be a huge development for the Lions and their defensive line depth up front. Already, the depth has been upgraded, which is good to know ahead of a season in which the Lions have to get tougher up front on defense for a complete turnaround.
The hope for the Lions is that the team has enough defensive line depth to get by this season. Even though the Lions have some bodies up front, they can always use more in camp, and that is what Brown figures to bring the team. He’ll get his chance to impress in the preseason to perhaps earn a role on the practice squad in Detroit.
READ NEXT: Several Lions Dinged up Following First Week of Practice
0 Comments