Tag: Titus Young

Bob Wojnowski: Lions finally have teeth to match their roar


Bob Wojnowski

Detroit — Oh my, how things have changed. At times in Ford Field on Sunday, the crowd was so loud, the Lions’ offense had to plead for calm. At times, the quarterback was so jacked up, he looked capable of firing the ball all the way across the street to Comerica Park.

Something startling is starting to happen at this hot little corner in downtown Detroit, and for their part, the Lions are determined to make it happen. That should be their theme this season, because it sure is Matthew Stafford’s theme — make something happen.

The gamblin’, gunslingin’, gosh-darnin’ quarterback was dominant in the home opener, throwing four touchdown passes in the Lions’ 48-3 blasting of the Chiefs. The Lions spent the offseason collecting players and plaudits, and though it was just one game, they showed it all in the biggest blowout in franchise history.

This is about talent, and the 2-0 Lions definitely have some. It’s also about attitude, and they’re certainly developing some, from the noise in the building to Kid Rock and Bob Seger in the postgame locker room. Going back to last season, this is six straight victories, and it’s happening with aggressiveness on offense and defense, and even with a cutthroat edge.

At long last

Jim Schwartz and his coaching staff are letting the fellas loose, and that’s partly because the Lions finally, finally have the quarterback capable of doing it. Stafford threw soft passes, feathered strikes and absolute lasers. His 36-yard pass down the middle to tight end Tony Scheffler in the second quarter was a thing of beauty — almost as audacious as Scheffler’s touchdown dance.

The Lions are having fun and they should. In an amusing pantomime, Scheffler pretended he was making a fire and sending smoke signals. (They were playing the Chiefs, get it?) Actually, the Lions are using more conventional means to send their signals, and it begins with a franchise quarterback who’s healthy and happy to fling.

“Your radar’s gotta be on high alert when Matt’s got the ball in his hands,” Scheffler said. “On my touchdown, he put some velocity on it and stuck it on my helmet. But we have a lot of stuff that needs to be fixed if we want to be the team we think we can be in January.”

The playoffs in January are a long way off, but not as long as they were two weeks ago. The Lions just hammered a team that was 10-6 last season, one week after handling another 10-6 team in Tampa. Granted, the Chiefs look positively awful, committing six turnovers.

But Stafford is growing rapidly, as he searches for the line between making something happen and needlessly forcing something to happen. Early in the game, the Lions were a bit sluggish. Stafford threw a bad interception instead of taking a sack, although the Chiefs fumbled it right back.

Stafford has shown he can scramble, and he and offensive coordinator Scott Linehan are finding ways to make teams pay. When the Chiefs’ defense loaded up to stuff the run, Stafford hit star Calvin Johnson for two touchdowns. When they adjusted, he found Nate Burleson, Jahvid Best, emerging rookie Titus Young and others.

“The big thing was, Matt took some hits and kept making the throws,” center Dominic Raiola said. “When teams leave Calvin out there one-on-one, that’s disrespectful to me. That’s what happens — you get dunked on. We got an aggressive coaching staff. We’re gonna stay fangs out.”

Fangs out, everyone in. Yep, you can feel something building here, after all the years of misery.

People wonder what spawns confidence. I’ll tell you what does: Talent. Stafford has the smarts, the arm and the leadership, and Johnson has become an amazing weapon.

Here were the Lions, up 20-3 late in the third quarter, facing a fourth down at Kansas City’s 1. Field goal by the ever-dependable Jason Hanson? Aw, boring. As the crowd momentarily quieted, Stafford dropped back, zipped a quick pass to Johnson, and the fans erupted again.

“We’ve been doing it for a while now and Calvin kind of knows what I’m thinking, and I’m the same way with him,” said Stafford, 23-for-39 for 294 yards. “It’s a good start, that’s the way we look at it.”

A ferocious start

It’s only a start, but the Lions attacked with stunning ferocity. This is who they’re trying to become — an explosive passing team that runs to keep the opponent honest. There also was some animosity in this one because defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham was accused in the offseason of tampering with Kansas City players, a charge that really ticked the Lions off.

I’m not saying they ran up the score. The Chiefs were so incompetent, the score practically ran itself up.

I am saying, when Stafford is flinging like this, the Lions are capable of running up points quickly. Through two games, he has thrown for 599 yards and seven touchdowns, with only two interceptions.

“Until we get some playoffs and championships, I’m not gonna walk around with my chest pumped out,” Burleson said. “But I don’t think people truly realize how many weapons we got. That’s the one thing that makes us so powerful. Matt makes throws that a lot of quarterbacks wouldn’t even attempt. We’re a good team, but our goal is to be great.”

They have a good quarterback who’s striving to be great. Nothing really has changed and everything has changed. The Lions’ goals are still the same, but now, early evidence suggests they’re legitimately attainable.

bob.wojnowski@detnews.com

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Lions’ ‘gamer’ Ricardo Silva stays in thick of action, roster battle


Lions: Notebook

Chris McCosky/ The Detroit News

Detroit — Ricardo Silva, an undrafted rookie out of Hampton, usually stands off by himself during practice.

The rest of the defensive players are in a pack and Silva, invariably, is about 10 yards apart, by himself, often rehearsing the drops or the coverages that are being played out on the field.

It’s a bit ironic a guy so often by himself in practice is so often in the thick of the action during games.

In limited time in three games, he has two interceptions and recovered a fumble.

“He makes plays when he’s in there,” coach Jim Schwartz said.

He picked off Tom Brady late in the second quarter, which was noteworthy for two reasons. One, he picked off Tom Brady, and two, he was in the game in the second quarter.

“The defense did a good job disguising that blitz,” Schwartz said. “We had the same play on earlier but this time the quarterback read it differently. But (Silva) is a little bit of a gamer. He’s always around the ball.”

Silva may have played his way onto the 53-man roster, or onto the practice squad at the very least. After starters Louis Delmas and Amari Spievey, and veteran Erik Coleman, Silva has emerged as the fourth safety.

At least for this week, he was ahead of veteran special teams ace John Wendling and recently signed Aaron Francisco and Michael Johnson.

No excuses

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady gave the Lions defense its due credit Saturday.

“They’re a good team,” he said. “They were a good team when we played them last year. It was a close game until the fourth quarter. When we made some plays in the fourth quarter we showed some resiliency, but they are a good team. They’re good on defense, they play well offensively and they’re very well coached. They’re tough.”

As for his own performance, Brady said, “From the first series on we just couldn’t get into a rhythm. It was just a bad night all around. You don’t make excuses for it. We just didn’t play the way we needed to.”

New punter

Signs are pointing to a possible change of the guard at punter. Rookie Ryan Donahue not only started the game but he also held for kicker Jason Hanson.

That’s been Nick Harris’ job the last eight seasons.

“Ryan is part of our preseason rotation,” Schwartz said. “He’s punted well and held well. It’s a different dynamic going out and doing it under the pressure of a sold-out crowd and a nationally televised game. We needed to see him in that situation.”

Donahue handled the pressure. His two punts averaged 50 yards (though on his 58-yarder he might have outkicked the coverage). His net was only 33 yards. He held for two Hanson field goals.

Harris also punted well, averaging 48 yards per boot, and a 43.5-yard net.

Extra points

Hanson has all but secured the kicking job. He booted field goals of 33 and 46 yards, plus he placed his kickoffs at the goal line, forcing the Patriots to return them. Twice the Lions stuffed the Pats inside the 20 on kickoffs. Dave Rayner missed a 48-yarder.

… Rookie receiver Titus Young saw his first game action and caught a 19-yard pass. He was pulled at halftime, though Schwartz said there was no aggravation to the sore hamstring.

… Linebacker Bobby Carpenter continues to have a strong preseason. His seven tackles led the team.

chris.mccosky@detnews.com

Injured rookie receiver Young watches Lions from sidelines


Chris McCosky/ The Detroit News

Allen Park — Can’t imagine what’s going on inside of rookie receiver Titus Young these days, but the phrase all revved up with no place to go comes to mind.

He has to stand aside and watch while the other 11 wide receivers go through position drills. During seven-on-seven and team drills, all he can do pop his head into the huddle, hear the play and then get out of the way.

During special team drills, he is off to the side catching passes with one of the ball boys.

This isn’t at all how Titus Demetrius “TD” Young — as he announced himself to Detroit on draft day — envisioned his first NFL training camp. But then again, he didn’t figure on injuring his right leg on the first day of practice, either.

The Lions aren’t saying much about the injury. Leg stiffness is what they are calling it. Young, a very personable and outgoing guy, isn’t saying much about it either.

“I will talk to you guys when I get back,” he said Saturday. “It should be next week some time.”

He said he wasn’t frustrated. He said it would all be for the best. That’s faith speaking — his spiritual faith and faith in himself.

But you don’t have to be a shrink to feel his anxiety. He wants to show the coaches and his teammates that he was worthy of that second round pick. He wants to show everybody that he is the guy who can fill the void at the third receiver spot, that he is the speedy, field-stretching playmaker that might be able to open some space for Calvin Johnson, Nate Burleson and Brandon Pettigrew.

He desperately wants to be the guy making catches and thrilling the fans during these long, hot practice sessions.

Instead, all he can do watch, wait and sign autographs when he’s asked.

Young is not in danger of being cut; let’s be clear about that. But with each passing day, with each missed rep, it starts to feel like the team is moving on without him.

“It’s still way early in camp,” coach Jim Schwartz said, diffusing any undue stress Young might be feeling. “We haven’t even played a preseason game yet. He’s done a very, very good job of staying involved and staying active with things he can do. When he’s out there he just needs to take advantage of his opportunity.

“How far behind is he? That’s really yet to be seen.”

No, he is behind. He was behind before he was injured. The lockout wiped out a rookie mini-camp and OTAs. He did get a crash course in the offense from Burleson and quarterback Matthew Stafford during the team’s voluntary workouts, but that’s grossly insufficient.

The Lions are in a tough spot, too. Because he practiced that first day, they can’t put him on the physically unable to perform list. There is no such thing as a short-term injury list. If they were to put him on the injured list – his injury isn’t believed to be that extensive – he’d have to miss the entire season.

They just have to wait for him to get healthy and get on the field and see how quickly he can make up for lost time.

But something general manager Martin Mayhew said on Friday resonated regarding players like Young and first-round pick, defensive tackle Nick Fairley, who is going to miss all of training camp with a broken foot.

“With the rookies (across the league), you are going to see a lot of those guys not make an immediate impact who would have had the ability to make an immediate impact with an offseason,” he said. “It’s going to be a different year for rookies.”

The more time Young misses, the harder it will be to catch up enough to make the kind of impact the Lions were hoping he’d make this season. That’s partly why the Lions have 11 other receivers in camp and that’s why Mayhew will continue to scour the waiver wires looking to upgrade the position.

As it is now, eight of the 11 receivers (not counting Young) are fighting for what probably will be one roster spot.

The Lions typically keep five receivers, with one of them being return specialist Stefan Logan. Johnson and Burleson are the starters. Young has been penciled in as the third receiver.

That would leave the following players fighting for one spot – veterans Derrick Williams, Rashied Davis and Maurice Stovall, second-year players Tim Toone and Nate Hughes, and rookies Demario Ballard, Marcus Harris and Dominique Barnes.

If the season started tomorrow, Williams would be the third receiver. The former third-round pick is having the best camp of his career. But Davis has value, too, as an elite special teams player. Stovall is 6-foot-5 and has shown well early on. Ballard is raw, but his size (6-foot-6, 220 pounds) and speed (4.45 seconds in the 40-yard dash) have raised some eyebrows.

So put yourself in Young’s shoes, having to sit idly by as this competition burns day after day — not necessarily the competition for the roster spot, but the competition to be the third receiver.

It can’t be easy.

“We assume he will get back on the field and be able to make plays,” Schwartz said. “If he does, then he won’t be behind at all.”

If it were only that simple.

Lions rookie Nick Fairley says injury is no setback


Chris McCosky/ The Detroit News

Allen Park— Rookies, even those drafted 13th overall, can ill-afford any setbacks in this condensed, post-lockout training camp.

Thus, there was a high level of concern throughout the organization when defensive tackle Nick Fairley’s sore left foot was in a walking boot Tuesday, the first day the Lions were full pads.

“It’s not a (setback) at all,” said Fairley, as he walked past reporters after practice. “I am doing what I can to get back as soon as I can.”

The fact that neither he nor coach Jim Schwartz could accurately say when he might be back, or what the full extent of the injury was, heightens the concern.

Schwartz said Monday, after Fairley injured the foot on a special-teams drill, preliminary X-rays were negative. Yet on Tuesday, the Lions medical staff was examining the foot for a possible stress fracture or other complications.

“We are still doing some tests,” Schwartz said. “We are having a lot of different people look at it. He’s down for now.”

When asked if he’d term it a long-term or short-term injury, Schwartz said, “I really can’t say right now.”

Fairley, like the other rookies, already was working from behind because all the offseason team work was canceled by the lockout. He didn’t have the benefit of a rookie orientation, rookie minicamp or team OTAs.

“Rookies have a lot on their plate,” Schwartz said on the eve of training camp. “Usually they are here on May 17 or before that. They have a rookie orientation, they get to mix in with the vets and work out at the facility. They are learning the system and going through OTAs and minicamps and by the time they get to training camp they are familiar with the system and we know they are in shape. They know their teammates and they know their way around. They have all that stuff under their belt and they can go out to training camp and compete for spots and playing time.

“What happens now is, they have to learn the system while all of that other stuff is going on. They are starting from zero. It’s a lot to manage.”

Even before the foot injury, Fairley was not expected to come in and start or make an immediate impact like Ndamukong Suh did last season. He was working in as the fourth or fifth defensive tackle behind Suh, Corey Williams, Sammie Hill and Andre Fluellen.

So, though the injury is a concern, it’s far from a deflating blow to the team’s optimism.

“He can pick up some things from watching on the sidelines,” Williams said. “He can watch the technique of some of the vets. There’s some stuff he can do while he’s out, but it’s no replacement for actually being out there doing it.”

Dealing with injuries is an inevitability of any training camp, but without the offseason work, teams are forced to make tough decisions on when they can bring players back. Case in point: starting right tackle Gosder Cherilus, coming off microfracture knee surgery, hasn’t practiced the last two days. He’s dealing with soreness and the coaches aren’t quite sure how much to push him.

“We would have liked to see him bounce back,” Schwartz said. “Guys coming off knee surgery, you know it’s going to get sore but you want to get past it. You don’t want to put them out there when it’s still sore but you want to push them through.

“In the past, we’d push them through (the soreness) in OTAs and figure out the best way to handle it then.”

Now, precious work days are being lost while they try to work Cherilus through the soreness.

In other injury news, running back Maurice Morris left practice Tuesday because of a sore left hand. The results of X-rays were not available after practice.

Linebacker Zack Follett (neck) had a scheduled day off. Cornerback Jack Williams (knee) and rookie linebacker Cobrani Mixon (unspecified) also missed practice.

Rookie receiver Titus Young (leg) and starting left tackle Jeff Backus (pectoral muscle) are on the non-football injury list.

With Backus and Cherilus out, Schwartz has had to be creative with his line drills. Second-year tackle Jason Fox has taken some reps at guard. Veteran guard Donald Thomas has worked some at tackle. And rookie Johnny Culbreath has gotten way more work than would be normal for a seventh-round pick.

“It’s not experimental, it’s by necessity,” Schwartz said. “With Backus and Gos out, and with (tackle) Corey Hilliard, (guard-center) Dylan Gandy and (Tony Ugoh) still unable to practice (signed free agents), it’s forced guys to do double duty and cross train at other positions. We are getting a good look at some of these guys.”

Camp update

Lions training camp practices today (9:15 a.m.) and Thursday (4:15 p.m.) are open to the public. Gates open a half-hour prior to the start time; access is on a first-come, first-serve basis.

chris.mccosky@detnews.com

Tim Twentyman: Three high-potential Lions picks trumps one Patrick Peterson


Tim Twentyman

Allen Park — The best thing that happened to the Lions during last week’s draft is what didn’t happen.

The Lions reportedly tried to move up from the 13th pick to the Cardinals’ fifth pick in order to draft LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson.

Peterson was by far the best corner available in the draft and getting him would have instantly fulfilled a need for the Lions.

But at what cost?

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The Lions offered their first, second and fourth-round picks to move up the eight spots.

The Cardinals, obviously, scoffed at the offering and a deal was not made. They selected Peterson themselves.

We got a good idea of what it would have taken to get the pick when the Falcons made a trade to move into the Browns’ No. 6 spot — the pick just after the Cardinals’.

The Falcons wanted Alabama receiver Julio Jones and paid exceedingly for him. They gave up five picks: this year’s first, second and fourth-round selections, and next year’s first and fourth-rounder.

That’s a lot picks to hand over for one player, even though they’ll likely be late-round picks.

Let’s just pretend for a moment that the Cardinals had accepted the Lions offer of three picks in this year’s draft. The Lions would have gotten Peterson, but wouldn’t have had another pick until the third round (75th overall).

That means no Nick Fairley, and likely no Titus Young or Mikel Leshoure.

No thanks.

I’m not saying Fairley is going to be a better player than Peterson, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility. Did anyone see the national championship game?

What the Lions would have had to give up to get Peterson just wasn’t worth it, especially after evaluating the Lions haul afterwards. Most experts gave the Lions rave reviews for this year’s class.

I think Fairley is going to be a terrific player and I think the Lions have solidified their defensive front for the next five or six years, at least.

Mix in the explosive third receiver (Titus) and power rusher (Leshoure) that the Lions snagged in the second round, and I’m just fine with how things worked out.

The Lions know that cornerback is the deepest position in this year’s free-agent class.

Filling three needs with terrific talent in the first two rounds makes more sense to me than getting one great player at one position of need.

It’s simple math.

tim.twentyman@detnews.com

ESPN’s Mel Kiper: Lions’ Nick Fairley ‘will have immediate impact’


The Detroit News

ESPN’s Mel Kiper, draft expert, has identified his early-impact players from the first round of last week’s NFL draft. And while Lions tackle Nick Fairley wasn’t among the top three players mentioned by Kiper, Fairley did warrant mention among Kiper’s “notables.”

“Nick Fairley will have an immediate impact, but it’ll be hard to say how much of it is him alone, particularly with Ndamukong Suh,” Kiper wrote. “But if they can work off each other early, look out.”

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Kiper’s top three early-impact defensive players from the first round were linebackers Von Miller of Texas AM (Broncos) and Aldon Smith of Missouri (49ers), and end Robert Quinn of North Carolina (Rams).

Kiper later revealed his immediate impact players from rounds 2-3, and his list included Lions receiver Titus Young of Boise State.

“Several teams took a hard look at him late in round 1, and Detroit saw a ton of value while passing on other needs, and I liked their decision,” Kiper wrote.

John Niyo: Lions might strike lightning with Titus Young


John Niyo

Allen Park — Moments after the Lions drafted Boise State receiver Titus Young in the second round of the NFL draft Friday night, general manager Martin Mayhew called him “a stick of dynamite.”

Not long after, somebody decided to light the fuse on a guy who’s about to become a fan favorite in Detroit, whether Lions fans realize it or not.

He’s been called a poor man’s DeSean Jackson by at least one prominent draft analyst, as the NFL Network’s Mike Mayock compared him to Philadelphia’s dynamic Pro Bowl playmaker leading up to the draft. And not to be outdone, Lions coach Jim Schwartz even referred to him as “DeSean” by accident after responding to a question about that comparison Friday night.

But while that’s a heck of a compliment — and the Lions have been practically penniless when it comes to a No. 3 receiver the last couple of years — Young passionately and playfully took issue with it.

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“I’ve never been another man’s nothing,” he said, laughing. “I’ve always known that I’ve been Titus Young from Day One. My mother named me Titus Demetrius Young. She didn’t name me nothing else. I know who I am and I know people compare you to people. But God made me to be me. He made me to be Titus Demetrius Young. You can compare me all you want to, but I’m no man’s poor man.”

And right there, man, I can tell you this: We in the local media were starting to realize we probably struck it rich with this pick.

Whether or not the Lions did, none of us can say for sure, obviously.

I actually liked the pick — more so than the trade up to snag Mikel Leshoure, though I didn’t have a huge problem with that, either — because it adds talent and addresses a glaring need. (And in case you didn’t notice, Bryant Johnson and Derrick Williams combined for a whopping 21 catches last season.)

Sure, there’s more glaring needs at linebacker and cornerback. But the best of the corners were off the market before the Lions picked Friday night. And if you hadn’t noticed by now, this draft class of linebackers is more than mildly underwhelming. (A linebacker from Michigan (!), Jonas Mouton, was a second-round pick.)

Just call him T.D.

Young, meanwhile, is anything but underwhelming. The 5-foot-11, 175-pounder plays a little like Jackson, maybe, and in addition to his return ability, he could thrive in that role Schwartz envisions for him helping Nate Burleson help Calvin Johnson and Brandon Pettigrew, and vice versa. (Where will he play? “Where Calvin’s not,” Schwartz joked.) But he also smiles and laughs eerily like Desmond Howard — Young laughs a lot, too — and he talks a bit like Chad Ochocinco, which isn’t all bad.

But sorry for the interruption, Titus. Please continue that thought.

“Actually, my initials my whole life have been T.D. Young,” said Young, the youngest of five children — and the only boy — growing up in Los Angeles, where his parents, Richard and Teresa Young, are pastors. “So it’s been Titus Demetrius Young — Touchdown Young. So I just feel like football has been me ever since I was born. And now I can go play some more football in Dee-troit.”

He cackled as he put the emphasis on that last part, and he did so often Friday, enjoying this moment for all it’s worth. He even let out a little banshee cry at one point, as he talked about leaving behind the dominant program they’ve built on the Smurf Turf in Boise and joining the Lions, who haven’t made the playoffs since 1999.

“The green turf is gonna be a little bit of an adjustment for me,” Young said, “but I know the blue uniforms will keep me at home.”

And fittingly, at least the way Young sees it, Hall of Famer Barry Sanders was the one on the stage Friday in New York announcing his selection for the Lions.

“I know Barry Sanders,” said Young, who had his off-field struggles early at Boise State but rebounded well playing for a no-nonsense coaching staff. “I know a lot about him. He went to Detroit and he wanted to win. His whole thing was about winning. And unfortunately he wasn’t able to win as much as I believe that when I come in we’re going to be able to win.”

All of which brings him back to where he started in a 10-minute conversation that had everyone in stitches, even after he got choked with emotion and broke down in tears a couple of times.

Family ties

It turns out Young has family ties to Detroit, where his maternal grandfather lived. He hasn’t visited since his grandfather passed away in 1998, but he says he’s coming home.

“My roots are actually in Detroit,” Young said, when asked to explain the tears. “It’s just the emotion of I’m actually gonna be back in a family town. That’s my home now. I’m gonna take care of Detroit, and I know they’ll take care of me. And all this emotion is really just all the hard work and all this waiting and all this patience and having faith in the Lord and …”

And then he broke down again, just before he managed to crack another joke about his father being from Texas. (“So he’s probably a little upset I ain’t in Dallas,” Young laughed.)

“But the whole thing is just about winning,” he added. “I feel like we’re all gonna be winners in Detroit. Not just me — the community, the kids in Detroit, they’re gonna know that the Lions are here to stay. We ain’t just no anybody; we’re coming to play.”

john.niyo@detnews.com

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