Allen Park — Detroit Lions defensive backs coach Aubrey Pleasant wishes that he knew for sure what he had in Jeff Okudah.
Pleasant has seen the third-year cornerback practice plenty in the last two years, but as he noted Tuesday evening, “I think he’s played a total of zero games” since Pleasant arrived in 2021.
Of course, that’s not entirely accurate. Okudah played 48 snaps for the Lions in 2021 before an Achilles injury ended his season in the opener, but the point remains: Neither Pleasant nor defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn are ready to give Okudah a starting cornerback job over Will Harris just yet.
“I’m not just saying this just to be saying it, but both of those guys have been doing really good things on the field in practice and in games,” Glenn said. “This is an ongoing battle. It will be an ongoing battle. Man, I wish I could sit here and tell you, ‘This is the guy who’s going to be the starter.’ But I will say this: Both of those guys will have a role within the defense.”
So far, Okudah has been saying everything right. Usually that doesn’t mean much. But coming from Okudah, someone who has struggled mentally through a tough rookie season and an injury-shortened second year, it means something to Pleasant.
“Saying everything right lets me know his mental health is where it needs to be,” Pleasant said. “You heard me in the spring talk about small victories. I think (Okudah has) been able to accomplish that. I also think that he’s accepted the challenge of the competition, and we’re just gonna keep chopping this wood.”
It can be reasonably assumed that Sunday’s preseason finale at Pittsburgh will go a long way in deciding who will eventually get the starting nod for Week 1. There are plenty of practice reps to glean, but Pleasant wants one of the corners to grab the job with an in-game performance.
“The thing that’s really real for me as a position coach is, what you do in practice, can that correlate to the game?” Pleasant said. “You guys probably wouldn’t believe me, but there are some guys that are called ‘practice players.’ You go out there and practice and make everything right and do it right, yet under the lights, they’re not able to excel.
“And by no means am I saying this about Jeff, but I don’t feel comfortable to hang my hat on that until I actually see it as a coach.”
No matter who gets more reps opposite of Amani Oruwariye, Glenn said Tuesday that each player will play a prominent role in the defensive backfield.
“As the season progresses, there are roles as far as dime, as far as penny package,” Glenn said. “Each guy will have a chance to go out there and play. We just haven’t made a decision on who is that lock-down guy at that spot right now. I don’t believe in having a guy play for a quarter. During the preseason, yeah, that happens. But once the season goes, we’re going to have a guy that’s going to be that starter.”
Harris and Okudah aren’t the only players fighting to a photo finish for a starting role at corner. With the Lions leaning on more of a 4-2-5 style of defense heading into the season, a battle for the starting spot at nickel corner between AJ Parker and Mike Hughes is just as intriguing.
“Close, very tight battle,” Pleasant said.
Parker played 557 snaps (48.2%) for the Lions’ defense last year. He joined the team as an undrafted free agent but was thrown into the fire after a slew of injuries left the position group in disarray. Hughes, meanwhile, is a former first-round pick who signed with the Lions on a one-year, prove-it deal this past offseason.
Parker played a majority of the first-team snaps in OTAs and early on in training camp, but recently Hughes has started to get more looks in that spot. Pleasant said that he wouldn’t read too much into it.
“We’re passing the peas. We’re giving both those guys a very good opportunity to fight for their right,” Pleasant said. “I think both of them are two different players. They bring a different form of skill set to our defense, but both of them are honorable in what they bring. I just really believe as a coach that you can’t tell guys that they’re going to co-compete for a spot and then not give them an equal slice.”
And then there’s Chase Lucas, a seventh-round pick out of Arizona State who’s third-wheeling the competition a bit while also having an impressive camp of his own. Pleasant said that he’s reassured Lucas that the team likes what they see despite the other two guys boxing him out on a battle for the starting job.
“(Lucas is) a very smart player. Very heady. I love his personality. I love his energy. Some positional flexibility,” Pleasant said. “He’s a guy where he’s not getting as many reps as maybe he would deserve because of the fight that’s happening before him, and I’m very honest with him about that. So he understands that our trust and his ability to play has not faltered.”
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Twitter: @nolanbianchi