August 17, 2012; Baltimore, MD, USA; Detroit Lions running back Joique Bell (35) runs past Baltimore Ravens safety Amari Spievey (42) at M

Although the Lions pulled out a 27-12 win over the Baltimore Ravens Friday night, there were a lot of concerns regarding the play of the special teams, penalties and misguided turnovers. Let’s dive into it, and much more, with the daily news bullets:

• Anwar Richardson wrote early Saturday Morning about the special teams woes the Lions faced Friday night against the Baltimore Ravens. Coach Jim Schwartz was not too pleased and mentioned that the quality of practice will not be improving this week; it will be the quality of the players on the roster that will be improving this. It is unfathomable to think Schwartz is going to shake up the roster THAT much, but it is in the realm of possibility that he cuts a few guys who did not show flashes of brilliance on special teams.
• It is sad to see that Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher and former Playboy Playmate Jenny McCarthy are no longer romantically together. That would have made for great bulletin board fodder for when the Lions play against the Bears this season had the power couple stayed together until Oct. 22.
• Safety John Wendling is starting to earn that three-year, $2.75M ($750K signing bonus) contract he signed in 2011 after recording two pass breakups and a sack during Friday’s game against the Ravens.
• Rookie wide receiver Ryan Broyles (ACL) who has struggled to practice much during training camp saw his first preseason action Friday night and he recorded two catches for 24-yards.
• Despite defensive end Willie Young blocking on punt on special teams, the rest of the squad looked lackluster at best. Too many players were taking the wrong angles to the returners, other were over-perusing the tackles and a fair amount of the rest just blatantly missed tackles or tried to get away with arm tackles. Kicker Jason Hanson nailed two long field goals and rookie kicker Derek Dimke also kicked one true through the uprights. As John Kreger pointed out, if it wasn’t for a pair of penalties by the Ravens’, Detroit would have allowed two huge kick returns, one of which that went for a touchdown.

Photo Credit: Tim Fuller-US PRESSWIRE

The wait is over, the Detroit Lions will finally return to the field tonight against the Cleveland Browns. The first preseason

Here are five players that I will be keeping a close eye on tonight:

John Wendling
If you haven’t had the chance to make it to one of the Detroit Lions’ opener practices during training camp you are missing out on a real treat. Yeah, you’ve probably read that John Wendling has been making some plays at safety but you probably aren’t aware that he’s done all this while rocking a sweet mullet. With the health of Louis Delmas up in the air, the Lions may need Wendling to contribute on defense. That makes him a player to watch tonight, with and without his helmet.

Bill Bentley
It’s no secret that the Lions enter this season with questions at cornerback. Fears weren’t exactly put to rest following the draft when the Lions chose to use their first two picks elsewhere. However, third round pick Bill Bentley has played his way into a starting role for the preseason opener. The best case scenario is that he looks the part against the Browns and continues building momentum as the regular season approaches.

Joique Bell
The Lions picked up Joique Bell late in the 2011 season but signed him to a two-year contract to ensure they were able to keep him into this season. It appears to be a smart move with the team’s health at running back still looking questionable. Keiland Williams got a chance to carry the ball a bit last year but didn’t show much with the opportunities, ultimately leading to the Lions reaching out to Kevin Smith. The Lions have a position battle on their hands for the end of the running back depth chart and a if training camp reps are any indication, which they should be, Joique Bell has a lead on Keiland Williams. The question as they move into action against a live opponent is, can he keep it?

Kellen Moore
Shaun Hill is one of the best backup quarterbacks in the NFL but let’s be honest, Lions fans don’t want to see him on the field in a meaningful situation. Multiply that sentiment by however many times and it applies to Kellen Moore as the third quarterback. Still, as one of the most controversial prospects during the last draft cycle, I am very interested to see how he looks against an NFL defense. It may only be a training camp NFL defense primarily made up of players that won’t make the Browns’ final 53-man roster but it is still a step in the evaluation process of Kellen Moore. Will he look like nothing more than a camp body or a guy with enough savvy to overcome his physical limitations?

Patrick Edwards
The Lions have a solid four-deep at wide receiver in Calvin Johnson, Nate Burleson, Titus Young and Ryan Broyles (when healthy) but there is still some sorting out to do after that and Patrick Edwards has a chance to stick on the final roster. He went undrafted following a highly productive career as a Houston Couger but has been one of the more impressive young players in Lions camp this year. His solid pass catching skills have translated into NFL camp and he has the ability to contribute in the return game.

To ensure that everyone has a chance to vote, polls will remain open until midnight on the west coast. At that time, a winner will be declared and the tournament will continue with another matchup the following day.

We’re staying on the defensive side of the bracket today. Who will move on to round two?

(more…)