The Lions Finally Get to Play Real Football This Week
After over a month of conditioning drills and individual work that feels more like extended physical therapy, the Detroit Lions finally begin their Organized Team Activities this week. And yes, there is a real difference between what they’ve been doing and what starts now.
Those previous workouts have been mainly focused on conditioning, rehab, and some positional drills. No offense vs. defense. No one-on-ones. Nothing that looks like actual football. OTAs represent the final phase of the offseason, and while shoulder pads and live contact are still prohibited, teams can finally go 7-on-7 or 11-on-11.
Translation: it’s the first time entire units will be working together against a common opponent. It’s the beginning of real football.
The Schedule That Actually Matters
The Lions’ OTA schedule runs three weeks: May 27-29, June 2-4, and June 9-11. Media gets to watch one practice per week, so expect coverage for three practices over the next three weeks. Detroit will also hold a two-day mandatory minicamp the week after the final OTA (June 17-18), and reporters should be on hand for both of those sessions.
The Lions enter OTAs with plenty of questions and intrigue on both sides of the ball. Which is exactly where this franchise lives these days.
The Cornerback Situation Demands Your Full Attention
Sure, you could focus on the rookie class. Blake Miller jumping right into the starting lineup would be fascinating to watch, and eyes will be on Derrick Moore to see if he can make an immediate impact. But that feels too easy.
You could watch the free agency class, but only Cade Mays, DJ Wonnum, and Isiah Pacheco are likely to step into significant roles right out of the gate. You could focus on Year 2 players like Tyleik Williams, Tate Ratledge, and Isaac TeSlaa.
But the real show is at cornerback. Terrion Arnold, D.J. Reed, and even Ennis Rakestraw are the guys who need to prove they belong on this defense.
All three have been varying levels of disappointments so far, mainly due to injuries, but they’ve all shown promise at varying times. Nothing they do this week is likely to remove any healthy skepticism, but it would sure be nice to see them compete at a high level against the Lions’ talented receiving corps.
Detroit’s coverage needs big improvement in 2026, and their strategy at cornerback appears to be letting their young players compete. If Reed and Arnold can prove they were worth the investments, Detroit’s defense should take a major step in 2026. And if Rakestraw can stay healthy and excel when called upon, suddenly the Lions secondary would have some young, promising depth.
That’s a lot of ifs for a franchise that has learned not to count on anything until it actually happens. But damn if it wouldn’t be nice to finally have some answers in the secondary.
Which Lions player has you most curious heading into these OTAs? Are you buying into the cornerback competition or are you still convinced this whole thing is going to be a disaster? Drop your take in the comments.
Man I’m genuinely excited to see Reed and Arnold get a real chance to show what they can do in actual competitive drills. If those two can stay healthy and play like they did in flashes last year, our secondary could actually be a strength instead of a weakness. That’s not asking for much but it would change everything for this defense.
Look I want to believe in the cornerback group but I’ve seen enough injuries and inconsistency from these guys that I’m not getting my hopes up yet. Hope I’m wrong and they prove me right over the next few weeks, but I’m not holding my breath.
It’s wild to see this org actually develop young corners and let them compete instead of just throwing darts at free agents like we used to. Campbell and Holmes are doing things the right way, and even if this secondary still has some growing to do, at least we’re building something sustainable now.
The fact that we finally get to see some real football happening is huge. OTAs hitting different when you can actually line up offense vs defense and see what’s working. Really curious to see if Rakestraw can stay healthy because that depth at corner would be a game changer for us.