ALLEN PARK, Mich. – A popular line around NFL camps these days is that the preseason games “don’t count but they matter.”
For Detroit Lions rookie cornerback Darius Slay, this next one counts and matters.
It appears that Slay has a chance to lock down a starting job for the regular-season opener with a strong performance in Thursday’s exhibition against New England at Ford Field.
“He’s taken a jump this week,” coach Jim Schwartz said. “He’s going to have an opportunity to get more reps against some pretty good competition, a top-notch quarterback (Tom Brady of the Patriots) and a very good passing offense. It’s a very important week for him.”
Slay replaced nine-year veteran Ron Bartell with the first-team defense after last week’s exhibition loss at Cleveland.
Bartell has struggled since returning from a shoulder injury suffered earlier in training camp.
The Lions’ coaching staff has been particularly impressed with Slay’s man-to-man coverage skills.
“It didn’t give me any more confidence,” Slay, a second-round draft pick out of Mississippi State, said of the promotion. “I’ve already been confident about my game. I’m just stepping up to the plate. I’m just ready to compete.”
CALVIN UPDATE
Receiver Calvin Johnson missed his second straight practice because of a bruised knee. He also sat out last week’s game.
Asked if he plans to play Thursday, Johnson said, “Yeah. We’ll see how it goes when we get out there.”
The starting offense is in need of a lift from its star receiver after the unit failed to score a touchdown in seven possessions over the first two games.
“We’re going to be OK on offense,” Johnson said. “My thing is just to get my wind right. It’s going to be a long season but the better you are conditioned, the better you’re going to be in that fourth quarter.”
As for what he wants to see most from the offense right now, Johnson said, “Starting fast more than anything.”
HOME SWEET HOME
The Lions technically broke training camp following Tuesday’s practice, but it wasn’t quite like the old days when they stayed in dorm rooms without air conditioning.
Schwartz said it used to be a “celebrated day” throughout the league.
“It’s tough in the NFL,” the coach added with a little sarcasm. “They’ve got to check out of the hotel today.”
So, it’s not exactly roughing it during camp anymore.
“But it is a little bit different,” Schwartz said of the change. “We’ve talked about this as a team. We have to have the maturity to be consistent when there is no horn blowing in the morning to wake you up, when there’s no bed check at night.
“The guys that are going to be successful in the NFL can handle that kind of discipline. If they can’t then they’re not going to be a part of what we do.”
STARTERS’ SNAP COUNT
The third preseason game is always the one where the first team gets its most playing time.
The Lions aren’t game-planning to the extent they would for a regular-season game, but they are preparing in other ways as if it’s a real game week.
Schwartz was noncommittal on how much the starters will play, but it likely will be for the first half, if not into the third quarter.
“We play them as much as we think they need to get played,” Schwartz said. “It depends. There have been times where we said ‘Hey, we’re going to take it into the half’ and then you’ve got 50 snaps in the first half on offense. Well, that’s too many. There’s other times where you say, ‘We’re going to shut them down after a half’ and maybe they play only 20 snaps. That’s not enough.
“We’ll just play it as the game develops. It’s hard to really have any kind of set agenda other than having a feel for it during the game.”
EXTRA POINTS
--- Reserve quarterback Shaun Hill missed practice for the second straight day because of an unconfirmed injury that's not believed to be serious. He is among several players whose status for Thursday won't be announced until game day.
--- Schwartz confirmed that Ashlee Palmer is in line to be the starter at left outside linebacker, replacing Justin Durant, who signed as a free agent with Dallas.
--- Actor Jeff Daniels, a Chelsea native, made his annual visit to training camp. Tigers pitcher Max Scherzer also stopped by Tuesday’s practice.
