Lions camp preview: Extreme makeover, cornerback edition

The Lions traded a third-round pick to Tampa Bay to acquire a proven veteran starter in Davis. The 27-year-old started at outside corner for the Buccaneers since being selected in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

Davis is at his best getting his hands on receivers early and disrupting the initial release and timing of routes. That sounds exactly like what Lions DC Aaron Glenn wants from his outside corners. He’s a very different type of stylistic talent than last year’s premium CB veteran, Cam Sutton. Hopefully that works better in Detroit.

There are some issues with Davis. He’s penalty-prone, averaging eight per season in his six-year career, and his effectiveness wanes the closer to the middle of the field Davis gets in coverage. His length at 6-foot-1, short-area burst and savvy in using his hands and body positioning to keep receivers from clean releases should prove a major upgrade at one of the outside CB spots.

The first-round pick has already proven to have an alpha personality in the manner of longtime Lions standout Darius Slay. Arnold knows he’s good and isn’t afraid to let anyone–his teammates, coaches, opponents or media–know it, too. It’s hard to be a great cover corner in the NFL without that sort of swaggy personality.

Two things stood out in watching Arnold take some first-team reps in OTAs and minicamp:
–he’s a lot faster than the advertised NFL Scouting Combine speed of 4.5 and can sustain it over a long distance.

–he’s a very active listener who is willing to be coached and not afraid of being corrected.

Arnold projects to start right away. His background as a safety at Alabama before transitioning to corner portends well for run defense and tackling, two things that are non-negotiable for outside corners in Detroit.

Robertson comes as a free agent from the Raiders with an impressively high fight/size of dog ratio. Just 5-foot-9, Robertson is a bulldog of a corner: aggressive, physical, talkative and cocksure.

In his four seasons in Las Vegas, Robertson was a much more effective player at outside corner than he was in the slot. It wasn’t particularly close, either. However, the Lions worked Robertson inside extensively in the spring practice sessions, perhaps cross-training a player who looks like he will be the top reserve CB on the roster?

How Robertson is used in training camp and preseason is definitely one of the big storylines to watch. As a shorter-than-ideal outside corner, Robertson’s plucky coverage skills are still starting-caliber but limited in certain matchups. But if he can also capably handle business in the slot, Robertson could wind up having a major role on the defense.

Detroit’s second-round pick out of Missouri, Rakestraw fits the bill of a physical, man-coverage specialist of an outside cornerback with some flexibility to also play in the slot. It’s easy to see the appeal for the Lions based on his college film.

Rakestraw has been limited as he comes off core muscle surgery, and he might not be at full speed to start camp. What we did see from Rakestraw in spring practices was walkthrough-speed reps both outside and in the slot. He’s smaller and lighter than fellow rookie Arnold, which could make a bump inside a quicker way to (potentially) get on the field as a rookie. Right now, Rakestraw looks like a utility depth piece that the Lions will look to find a more defined long-term role as his rookie campaign progresses.

Branch gets an asterisk because he’s not really a cornerback. He’s a defensive back, and the Lions figure to utilize him in all sorts of defensive capacities in his second season.

In his outstanding rookie campaign, Branch played almost 72 percent of his snaps as the Lions’ slot cornerback. He was great there, plus there was no real competition on the roster. Now the team has several other appealing (to varying degrees) options at the slot, but many questions at safety, which happens to be Branch’s natural position and the one he thrived in at Alabama.

All offseason, every person who has spoken about Branch — from Dan Campbell to Brad Holmes, Aaron Glenn to Branch himself — has indicated No. 32 will play more of a traditional safety role in 2024. We haven’t had a chance to see it yet as Branch recovers from offseason leg surgery. But he’ll still almost certainly see reps in the slot, and that’s why he’s still worthy of listing in the cornerback section.

His name conjures up terribly regrettable memories for Lions fans, the victim of having the worst moment of his career at the worst possible time.

Vildor’s status shows just how far the Lions have come at cornerback. He started the NFC Championship game as an outside cornerback. Six months later, he could very well be on the outside of the roster bubble, no higher than No. 6 at his position as the team enters training camp.

As is true with depth at most positions, special teams will be huge in determining roster spots. Vildor played extensively on punt and kick units last year and looked good in the new kickoff and kick return drills in the spring.

We still don’t have an authorized picture of Moseley in a Lions uniform to use even though he’s been on the team for over 16 months now. Injuries will do that to a player.

Moseley was signed in the 2023 offseason with the potential to be the Lions’ No. 1 cornerback despite the fact he was coming off a torn ACL that ended his 49ers career. Almost one year to the day after tearing one ACL, Moseley tore the other on just his second play as a Lion.

Who knows what Moseley has to offer now after nearly two full years of major knee surgeries and two snaps of football? If he’s got anything left physically, the 28-year-old could be a major boon to the Lions depth. He too can play either outside or in the slot.

Tackling (a higher career missed tackle rate than former Lions LB Jarrad Davis) and playing in the grey area between zone assignments were the biggest knocks on Moseley in his 49ers days, and it’s hard to imagine either got better in over a year of inactivity. The fact that he’s busting his butt to try, and that he stayed close with the Lions while on I.R. last season, is why Moseley is getting a chance to reboot his career.

Gilmore made the Lions as an undrafted rookie a year ago, one of the feel-good stories of last summer. Despite weighing just 174 pounds at six feet tall, Gilmore’s ball skills and instincts in man coverage were enough to make the team.

He only played two snaps on defense and 15 total on special teams over three games as a rookie, however. Gilmore was a fixture on the healthy scratch inactive list. On a team that burned through a litany of substandard CB options, that might not bode well for his chances to make the team again. There is an opportunity for Gilmore to show he can play more, but the depth chart above him looks a whole lot better than it did a year ago when he couldn’t get on the field.

Dorsey is another roster holdover hoping to stick around. He played extensively on special teams in 2023 for the Lions and fared pretty well. That’s his ticket to making the roster once again; Dorsey has struggled in man coverage and run defense when given chances in prior training camps with the Lions and the Ravens.

He’ll need to show more consistent capability in coverage to make the 53-man roster, but he’s eminently worthy of saving on the practice squad as a 5-foot-9 hitter who knows the defense and special teams roles well.

The only rookie UDFA cornerback entering training camp, Norris has hybrid CB/safety skills coming out of Fresno State. He’s got a similar skill set to Brian Branch, most notably as an attack dog from the slot who can also make plays in coverage. It’s easy to project Norris making the practice squad in Detroit in 2024 with some long-term upside.