Detroit Lions training camp is well underway and this coming Friday, they will take on the Atlanta Falcons in their first preseason game of the year.
Though it is still early, there are a couple of Lions who have been on the rise during camp, while another has been going in the wrong direction.
In a recent article published in Pro Football Focus, Kyle Meinke (of MLive) listed two Lions as “risers” and one as a “faller.”
One riser, one faller from Detroit Lions during 2022 training camp
As you can see below, Meinke named D.J. Chark and Malcolm Rodriguez as risers and Levi Onwuzurike as a faller for the Detroit Lions.
From Pro Football Focus:
Players chosen by: Kyle Meinke, MLive
Riser: WR D.J. CHARK/LB MALCOLM RODRIGUEZ
Kyed: Meinke wrote that Chark “has been sensational” and “is looking like a WR1.” Rodriguez is a rookie sixth-round pick who’s been getting reps with the first-team defense.
Faller: DT LEVI ONWUZURIKE
Kyed: The 2021 second-round pick has been out with back and hip ailments after also missing time last season with injuries. Lions head coach Dan Campbell did say Tuesday that he expects Onwuzurike to be back for Week 1.
“Just different concepts that they’re asking me to do that I just haven’t really done since like maybe like my second year in the league, I might have did a few of the things but just consistently throughout the years I haven’t been,” Chark said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “So there’s a lot of nuances in the playbook that’s allowing me to move around.”
“I think for sure,” Chark said afterwards. “But I also think we got a ways to go. We can do so much more. Today was good to come out and play the way we did as an offense, but it’s time to go correct it and I really have big expectations for this team, definitely for this offense, and I want to do my best to live up to those.”
Nation, what do you think is the upside for D.J. Chark and Malcolm Rodriguez in 2022? Which players have you been impressed with so far in training camp?
