Football
Observations from Lions’ first joint practice with New York Giants: Jameson Williams shines, aggressiveness ramped up
The Detroit Lions and New York Giants squared off Monday in joint practices, and the environment quickly turned testy.
Both teams have high aspirations for the upcoming season. It was competitive and physical, with multiple skirmishes breaking out between the two teams throughout the day.
Dan Campbell explained the benefit for his team squaring off against a new opponent in this setting.
“I think, there again, it helps. It’s another environment,” Campbell said. “The intensity goes up, there’s a little more pressure because you’re out here with another team, other players, other organization, different fans. I think you find out a couple things about these guys that you might not ordinarily find out until you get into a game. So it’s just a different way to evaluate and it breaks up camp, too.”
Here are observations from the first of two joint practices between the Lions and Giants:
Skirmishes break out
A big skirmish broke out between the Lions’ offense and the Giants’ defense Monday, beginning when Amon-Ra St. Brown made a catch near the sideline and tossed his defender away. Giants’ safety Dane Belton poked the ball out of his hands, and St. Brown retaliated by shoving him.
This set off the brawl, as several Giants defenders quickly swarmed St. Brown. The Lions’ offense came to their teammates’ defense. Penei Sewell was restrained by players on both sides, as several Giants pushed him out of the melee.
At one point, St. Brown appeared to have his helmet ripped off in the scrum. Multiple smaller fights broke out as a result of the initial battle. The wide receiver politely declined to talk to media after practice Monday.
“Yeah, that’s in the game. When you’ve got highly competitive guys, dogs, sometimes you’ve got to break dogs apart. You know what I’m saying?” said defensive back Amik Robertson after practice. “We’re just trying to keep it competitive because competitive nature brings out the best in both sides. That’s what Dan Campbell wants.”
Later in practice, another skirmish broke out between the Lions’ defense and the Giants’ offense. There was some extra pushing and shoving at the end of a run play, and Giants’ quarterback Daniel Jones appeared to be in the middle of it.
This came after Levi Onwuzurike knocked the ball out of Jones’ hands, which drew the ire of Brian Daboll. Undrafted rookie Morice Norris also delivered a big hit to Giants’ running back Eric Gray, which knocked Gray’s helmet off and drew several Giants players onto the field.
“A situation happens like that, you try to stand up for your guys but I thought it was a good, competitive practice all day today,” Jones said. “We made some plays and did some good things, there’s some things we need to sure up for sure. Good intensity and competitive spirit today.”
This came one play after Brian Daboll expressed frustrations with Levi Onwuzurike for knocking the ball out of Jones’ hands.
Williams, Montgomery stand out
The Lions got off to a good start early, as quarterback Jared Goff hit Daurice Fountain for an easy score in 7-on-7 work after a busted coverage in the Giants’ secondary. Goff was picked off later in the drill by Bobby Okereke, but enjoyed a mostly strong day through the air.
Goff hit Jameson Williams, who beat Cor’Dale Flott, on a deep ball for a score in a later team period, and the Lions’ run game had plenty of success. Williams had a strong day, burning the secondary on multiple occasions and later logging a touchdown in red-zone work.
After burning Flott, Williams appeared to wave to the defender as he ran into the end zone.
David Montgomery had a strong day weaving his way through tacklers Monday, as the Lions’ offensive line was able to pave lanes. It wasn’t all smooth, though, as Brian Burns still made his presence felt at points throughout practice.
Burns, who the Giants acquired in a trade this offseason, had a solid day getting into the backfield on multiple occasions.
Jefferson also continued his upward trajectory, getting reps with the second-team offense and showing good burst on the ground.
Giants attack Lions’ secondary
The Giants’ offense was also efficient on the other field. Daniel Jones looked solid, hitting Malik Nabers, Darius Slayton and Jalin Hyatt for big gains. Nabers also nearly had an exceptional catch near the sideline but was ruled out of bounds.
“I think they’ve got some good players back there. They can run and do some different things,” Jones said of the Lions’ secondary. “They did a good job. When you’re in a situation like this, a joint practice, you’re more focused on what you’re doing as a team.”
A review of the video revealed that Nabers appeared to indeed get both feet down, with Ifeatu Melifonwu in coverage. Melifonwu is expected to spend time competing for the nickel spot with Brian Branch moving to safety, given his background as both a corner and a safety.
Giants offense vs. Lions defense
Patricia Traina, beat writer for New York Giants On SI, observed the Lions defense against the Giants’ offense.
From her perspective, “As already mentioned, the energy was off the charts, and while I thought the Lions defense was a a little chippier, the Giants offense stayed in control for the most part, doing what they had to do but not backing down when challenged. Quarterback Daniel Jones went 12 of 17 in team drills and 7 of 8 in 7-on-7s. His lone blip on the day was a near interception by CB Carlton Davis on a curl route at the start of the team drills.
Running back Eric Gray took a nasty shot on a pass to the flat when cornerback Morris Norris de-cleated him. That brought an angry swarm of Giants players and some pushing and shoving that eventually subsided. Credit to the Giant, who last year you could argue were bullied a bit too much by Lions when they practiced together but who this year stood up to their adversaries.
One other item of note. The Lions defensive secondary, which is a work in progress, still has a ways to go. The Giants receivers were not only getting open, but they were also beating the defensive backs consistently.”
Hooker remains with third team
Hendon Hooker once again lined up with the third team, as Nate Sudfeld was with the backups. That unit was on the field for a limited portion of time, often taking just two reps at a time.
On one rep, Hooker looked hesitant and lost the ball when attempting to make a pass. His first rep during that portion of practice resulted in a scramble, and that was followed by the ball slipping out when he tried to throw on the next play.
Other notable players who spent Monday with the third team were Donovan Peoples-Jones and Tre’Quan Smith.
Sudfeld was up and down with the second team. He threw an interception and had several incompletions, including one almost in the dirt intended for Kalif Raymond.
Red zone finish
The Lions and Giants squared off in the red-zone to end Monday’s practice. Detroit’s defense started by stopping the Giants, as Marcus Davenport nearly got a sack and forced Jones to throw the ball away.
Detroit’s offense started with a 20-yard touchdown from Goff to Jameson Williams. However, a handoff to Montgomery was stopped for a short gain and Goff threw incomplete on the next two plays.
Sione Vaki scored for Detroit’s second-team offense after Sudfeld took a sack on the first play.
Hooker rushed for a touchdown with the third-team offense thanks to a scramble. On the final play of practice, though, he overshot Jalon Calhoun.
Injury news
The Lions had two starters, guard Kevin Zeitler and cornerback Terrion Arnold, leave practice to be evaluated for injuries. Zeitler is being looked at for a possible shoulder injury, while Arnold is being looked at for a possible concussion.
Arnold left after taking a big hit from Andrew Thomas, who was not wearing a guardian cap over his helmet. According to reports, Thomas was not required to wear one because his helmet tested better than league requirements.
When Zeitler exited practice, it was 2023 undrafted rookie Michael Niese who stepped in at guard with the first team.
This article was produced by the staff at Detroit Lions On SI. For more, visit si.com/nfl/lions
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