First Day of Detroit Lions OTA Review

The Detroit Lions opened OTAs on Thursday in Allen Park, the first organized team activities featuring the full 2016 roster. Or rather, the roster as it stands now. Already there are a few developments worth noting…

Tim Wright is now an ex-Lion. Again.

What’s notable here is that he was waived with injury designation. That opens the door for an injury settlement for the tight end, who caught 9 passes for 77 yards in his nine games in Detroit. The Lions claimed Wright off waivers from the Patriots, who had traded Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins to Tampa Bay for him prior to the 2014 season.

Brandon Pettigrew is hurt. Again.

With Wright out of the picture, Brandon Pettigrew is clearly the No. 2 TE on the roster behind Eric Ebron. But the veteran is still sidelined as he recovers from his second torn ACL. Indications are he is close to returning, but a full recovery is no sure thing.

I’m not counting on Pettigrew to contribute as anything other than the blocking tight end. In fact, it would not surprise me at all if he doesn’t even make the final 53-man roster. The health is the primary factor here. At this point in his career he’s a quality second tight end, and he’s the closest thing to a veteran locker room leader the Detroit offense has at this point. But if he loses another half-step thanks to the knee, he’s basically an undersized extra tackle. I would posit that Cornelius Lucas or another tackle winds up serving that role as the blocking tight end over a diminished Pettigrew.

It also opens the door for the undrafted free agents. Cole Wick impressed on opening day after also generating positive buzz during the rookie minicamp a couple of weeks ago. Adam Fuehne will benefit from more reps as well.

But the guy who really stands to benefit is Matthew Mulligan. Now on his seventh team in six years, he’s a guy who brings a varied skill set and loads of experience in all sorts of offenses. Blocking is not his forte, but he’s got some ability there. With Wright out as Ebron’s backup as the receiving tight end, Mulligan now holds that role.

Taylor Decker plays left tackle.

I’m trying to not read too much into this. Both Decker and incumbent left tackle Riley Reiff are going to play on both sides throughout the summer. Jim Caldwell and his coaching staff are evaluating who fits where best, and the only way to do that is to see each guy in a variety of situations.

That’s all this is…for now. Don’t make it more than that, as tempting as it might be for the crowd who wants Decker at left tackle and Reiff on the right. Up until the preseason, it really doesn’t matter.

Ameer Abdullah had a torn labrum

Projected starting RB Ameer Abdullah will miss time as he recovers from shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum he suffered late in his rookie season.

He played thru the injury in the final two games, rushing for 83 yards on 18 carries and also returning 6 kickoffs. He will be fine, but this plays into the battle for the return specialist spots I highlighted earlier in the week. Abdullah could be too valuable to the offense to risk another injury on the return units even though he fared pretty well in that capacity last season.

Stephen Tulloch is still a Lion

The ongoing saga of linebacker Stephen Tulloch somehow slogs on. He knows he’s going to be cut. The team has told everyone he will be cut. Yet here he is, still on the 90-man roster. He was not present at OTAs, nor was he expected to be.

Nobody knows why Tulloch is still on the Detroit Lions roster. None of the beat writers know. Tulloch’s agent doesn’t know. The national media, which continues to lag far behind on all things Lions, still projects him as the starting middle linebacker. Seriously, if you’re relying on ESPN or the NFL Network for your Lions news, you probably think Jeb Bush is still the GOP front-runner for president, too.

We will get resolution at some point, hopefully soon. Right now the Lions don’t need the roster spot (they’re at 88) so it’s not necessarily imminent. Whenever it happens, don’t fret; Tulloch is not going to be a Detroit Lion once the games actually count.