Unfortunately, if you’re not a fan of the Detroit Lions or the New York Giants, the things you’ve heard about the two teams’ joint practices probably have something to do with the near-constant skirmishes between the two clubs. In fact, training camp battles make up a majority of the headlines at this time of the preseason each year.
However, there is something to be said for a team that knows how to practice properly — how to turn the intensity up several notches without putting themselves or their teammates at unnecessary risk. Usually, you see this kind of thing in experienced teams that have been around for a while. In this case, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated sees it in a young and incredibly talented Lions team that understands it may be on the verge of something special.
Football practice is always going to result in altercations or the odd shoving match. The nature of the game and the way it’s played means tempers get heated and emotions run high. What you don’t want to see happen is what happened between Lions safety Kerby Joseph and Giants rookie receiver Malik Nabers, when things escalated, punches were thrown and practice was canceled.
This can happen during joint training sessions of most teams, but as mentioned above, part of being a good team is knowing how to train properly.
“The best I’ve ever seen. I don’t think you can teach that. I think he just has it,” Lions quarterback Jared Goff told Breer after practice. “Our whole coaching staff watches him outside the room – he knows exactly when to push and when to pull. Even if you sometimes think: Man, is this the right thing? A week later you think: Man, I’m glad he did that. He can anticipate better than many others. I’ve had many moments over the last three years where he has asked more of me. I appreciate that.”
You can read Breer’s full report here.
And now for the rest of today’s notes:
- Back in the familiar surroundings of the Meijer Performance Center.
- Honestly, I think Sewell could do the triple jump if he really wanted to.
