The Lions elevated offensive tackle Jamarco Jones from the practice squad on Wednesday, giving them a little bit of depth entering the game. But the most obvious solution to fill the void of Decker is Lions offensive tackle Dan Skipper.
Skipper took on left tackle duties against the Houston Texans in Week 10 while Decker missed due to a shoulder ailment. Campbell said after the game that with a little more time to prepare, he might’ve considered moving All-Pro right tackle Penei Sewell to the left side, so it’s possible he makes the switch for Thursday’s game.
As for Davis’ spot, the Lions will likely use some combination of Emmanuel Moseley, Kindle Vildor and Khalil Dorsey. Vildor started opposite Davis against the Colts, while rookie cornerback Terrion Arnold was out because of a groin injury. Vildor struggled at times — particularly in the first half — during his first start of the season and it’s fair to wonder if the Lions try something else against a talented Bears receiving trio.
Against Indianapolis, Moseley was playing his first game since coming off injured reserve due to a pectoral injury, and the Lions clearly wanted to keep his workload light. Prior to suffering the injury, Moseley was competing with Amik Robertson for a job at the nickel (slot) cornerback position, which Robertson eventually won. Both players have experience on the outside, but Campbell seemed to indicate it would be Robertson moving to outside cornerback if they roll with the trio of Arnold, Moseley and Robertson.
“All things are on the table,” Campbell said. "It’s not like Amik’s never played outside. He can go out there and not bat an eye and then you move (Moseley) inside which is great. So, we have all options on the table. We’re not afraid to play Dorsey with Vildor or whatever the case is. We’ve got options and we feel good about all of them.”
I really hope to see Amik on the outside and Mosley playing Nickel.
The thought of Vildor against that receiving core is somewhat scary.
If there’s one thing all teams will have picked up on from the Colts game, Vildor is the weak link, throw at him early and often.
I really hope to not see Amik on the outside. I called him Jerry Jacobs 2.0 in the past and I stand by that, he’s all heart and no brain, and if he messes up at nickel someone can usually make a covering tackle, but if he messes up on the outside that’s going to be 7.
Moseley has the better pedigree at outside CB although it’s hard to expect much from him when he hasn’t played any meaningful downs since week 4 of 2022.
There’s no really good option right now, so I’d plump for Jack Fox, that lazy so and so barely does anything for this team at the best of times. It’s about time he stood up and made some plays.
Also, i know Manu is a project but I’d be lying if i said there wasn’t a part of me that was concerned he can’t even get dressed as a backup after 7 months of nfl training under this coaching staff.
This is what my failing memory has from when we signed him. Some context on his improved play from last season:
When healthy — Robertson suffered a concussion against the New York Jets and barely played against the Miami Dolphins the following week as he recovered — he’s been a starter ever since and has played like one of the better outside corners in the league. According to Pro Football Reference, Robertson has an allowed passer rating of 45.4 (fourth in the NFL), a completion rate of 54.8 (33rd) and 5.9 yards allowed per target (58th).
Manu is in our 2025 and beyond plans. Using a 2025 3rd rounder on him is like drafting him in the 3rd round of 2025. He will be a primary back up to Decker next year and will even get some starts with injury. The kid has a LONG NFL career ahead of him.
It’s why they call it a redshirt year.
Why is the PS player is moved up to play over the guy on the 53? If Manu was placed on the PS, some team would snatch him up in a NY second and stash him on their 53. Doesn’t mean he’s ready for action this year, but they believe his talent will be special when he’s had a year of growth/learning.
I trust in our staff to build for the long term, and Manu is going to be a good one in the long run.
Manu is coming from basically a community college level of play. As special as he may be, there’s no way he was ever going to be ready to play meaningful snaps this season.
His career passer rating allowed is 99.9. His passer rating allowed this season is 95.3. Our defense’s passer rating allowed this season is 72.7. He also has a 15.4% missed tackle rate. He’s the fish in our backfield.
Snaps
Targets
Target %
Comp %
Yards / Tgt
Davis
631
69
10.9
56.5
6.9
Arnold
602
60
10.0
58.3
6.4
Robertson
349
54
15.5
66.7
7.6
Branch
544
50
9.2
52
5.3
Joseph
710
27
3.8
40.7
5.4
It’s pretty clear from that that other teams think he’s the fish too.
On the other hand, Kerby has 7 picks on 27 targets, for an outrageous 26% interception rate when targeted.
Yep - i agree with and understand all of this. No disagreement at all.
My point was that there’s a part of me that was hoping Manu’s current level of ability (after 7 months of development under this staff) would have been high enough above his floor that they wouldn’t be promoting PS players over him.
But yes, it is not yet that time. Just need more patience and to continue bringing him along.
