Terrion Arnold had a year to forget with the Detroit Lions in 2025.
After a hot start, he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury that eventually required surgery. He went from Detroit's best defender to their most notably absent, suffering through the injury bug that continued to plague the team throughout this past year.
Arnold has to have a bounce-back season for the Lions as they enter another season with contention hopes. Having him and D.J. Reed lineup in the secondary is a luxury, and it has to start to feel that way before fans begin to turn against the high-ceiling draft pick and the teams' huge free agency signing from the 2025 offseason.
Defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard knows that all too well, which is why he didn't mince words when discussing Arnold with LionsOnSI and John Maakaron at the NFL Scouting Combine:
"I need him to be quiet and just play...You guys know. I don't know if the media would like that, because I'm sure T.A. gives you guys a lot of things to write on. But no, I talked to, he calls me too much. But that kid has a great heart. Man, he wants to be great. But I told him it's a difference in talking about being great and actually being great. And he's starting to understand that."
Sheppard doesn't mince words regarding expectations for Arnold in 2026
Arnold needs to piece together a healthy 2026 season in order to really establish himself as not only one of the Lions' best defenders, but one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL. Since being drafted back in 2024, Arnold's only had one interception. It was cause for major celebration when he finally came down with his first career pick in 2025, only to be out for the year just three weeks later.
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He does talk a big game, telling reporters after his rookie season that he expected to be the best corner in the NFL "pretty soon." He looked spry to start the 2025 season, beginning to look very comfortable in man coverage. He also anticipated becoming more of a leader in the locker room for the Lions' defense.
But, the lack of turnover generation and occasional lapses in his tackling made it obvious that his sophomore year wasn't about to be revelatory.
Ideally, Arnold is able to come back for 2026 and be more comfortable in both Sheppard's system and next to Reed. Allowing a near-90 passer rating, as he did in his eight games played in 2025, isn't going to cut it based on Sheppard's expectations.