Lions unsurprisingly get lofty spot in ranking of NFL practice squads

After 53-man rosters are assembled around the NFL, it's easy to dismiss and overlook who ends up on each team's practice squad. Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell has always considered the practice squad part of the team though, essentially making it a 69-man roster that will play a key part in navigating a season.

Most of the Lions' initial 16-man practice squad for this year is comprised of players who spent some part of the summer with them, which is no surprise, and in many cases this is not their first year in Detroit. Two exceptions are also recognizable names and "headliners": wide receivers Tim Patrick and Allen Robinson.

It may not be too long before one or both of Patrick and Robinson is on the Lions' 53-man roster. Week 1 isn't out of the question, if they can get up to speed quickly.

Lions get lofty place in practice squad ranking, as expected

Chris Trapasso of CBS Sports did a top-10 ranking of initial practice squads around the league. The Lions have made a change since that initial shaping of their practice squad, adding safety Erick Hallett and releasing safety C.J. Moore, but that's inconsequential to them occupying the No.1 spot in Trapasso's ranking.

"The Lions secure the top spot mostly due to the receivers on their practice squad. DPJ is one of the most explosive receivers in the NFL -- 44.5-inch vertical and 11-7 broad jump -- Robinson has lost a few steps as we've seen him bounce around the league recently, but has experience nonetheless. Patrick was a shocking cut by the Broncos after a fantastic preseason, and Kennedy has long been a preseason hero in Detroit due to his suddenness underneath and reliable hands."

"At edge, Mitchell Agude registered four pressures in the preseason and feels like a young rusher with an upward-facing arrow. Lastly, JaMarco Jones is a former Ohio State offensive tackle with years of amazing preseason work on his resume. He just needs to translate some of that to the regular season if called upon as Detroit's swing tackle."

A case could've been made for a handful of guys the Lions wound up getting back on their practice squad to have made their initial 53-man roster. But as Campbell suggested going into roster cuts, they had more worthy players than they had roster spots available. Add Patrick and Robinson to that mix of players who came back, perhaps over other opportunities, and you easily get to what some people call the best practice squad in the league.