Is Lions Top Safety Ready to Return Against Vikings?
Detroit Lions safety Kerby Joseph did not participate in practice on Tuesday, when the team returned form their bye week.
The talented safety has been battling a knee injury for months, and a recent performance against the Chiefs forced the coaching staff to evaluate if he needed to sit and rest.
The former third-round pick did not suit up against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and did extensive rehabilitation during the bye week.
He reportedly put in "coaches hours" working with trainers in an effort to return and contribute in the second half of the season.
Appearing on 97.1 The Ticket for his weekly interview, head coach Dan Campbell provided a health update on the team's top safety.
"Yeah look, he's improving, but he still got a little bit to go here. So, we'll know more in the next couple of days. But you know, he's better than he was before we left for the bye."
Detroit Lions safeties coach Jim O'Neil indicated he learned from former New York Jets coach Rex Ryan that backup players and how they perform are also important in the evaluation of a position coach.
“One of the first lessons I learned from Rex Ryan when I was a younger assistant coach was he told me, ‘You’re not going to be evaluated by your starters. You’re going to be evaluated by how your backups play.’ That’s always kind of stuck in my head," O'Neil said. "And I think our entire coaching staff does an unbelievable job coaching everybody on the roster.
"So when we get in those situations, and just in the year and a half that I’ve been here, especially on defense, we’ve been decimated at every level of the defense," O'Neil added. "Guys have stepped up and gone in and played at a high level.”
Detroit will have Brian Branch return from his suspension and the team has developed growing trust in Erick Hallett and Thomas Harper.
The secondary played at a high level in the absence of several starters, catching the attention of the entire coaching staff and the competitive roster.
Branch indicated he is motivated to return and make up for his past mistakes.
“Oh, a lot of motivation. I feel like it’s another chip on my shoulder that they just added. I also want to apologize for that, what I did," Branch said. "That’s something I don’t condone. It’ll never happen again, but it definitely add another chip to my shoulder.”
The Raiders' Handling of Jakobi Meyers Has Caused a Stir
The Las Vegas Raiders must figure out what, if anything, to do with their top wide receiver, Jakobi Meyers.
Raiders Fumble Meyers Situation
Meyers requested a trade shortly before the season, but the Raiders turned him down. He restated the same desire heading into the Bye Week. Now, the Raiders have less than a week to decide. Raiders legend Lincoln Kennedy is not fond of how the Raiders have handled the whole thing.
“The situation with Jakobi is mishandled in many ways, because if they could have found a way to make it work, here is a receiver who’s already established himself as a receiver and can grow into this offense and be more productive if allowed,” Kennedy said on the Locked On Raiders podcast.
“We’ve seen flashes of it. We haven’t seen consistency, but we saw flashes of it… If we’re going to part ways with him, we’re really starting over again, and this goes back to my original point that I’ve been saying all year. You can’t keep starting over. You can’t keep starting over with new coaches and new players and expect to get anywhere because it just doesn’t happen overnight. You don’t walk onto the field and be like, ‘Oh, there’s my new number one.
“Because this offense hasn’t been consistent throughout the season, we’re still left holding whatever we’re holding in our hands, hoping that we can grip on and maybe get a win or get a collective offense. I don’t know how it happens overnight. That’s why I said this whole Jakobi Meyers thing has just been handled, really handled not well, in my opinion.”
The Raiders must make a decision soon on Meyers' future with the team as the trade deadline is fast approaching. Whether they keep Meyers or not, the addition of veteran wide receiver Tyler Lockett should help compensate for the loss of Meyers.
If the Raiders keep Meyers past the deadline, they will then have him, Lockett, and a healthier Brock Bowers in the mix moving forward. Still, Carroll noted it is too soon to make any assumptions.
"I'm going to need more days, as far as immediately, how much he can help. But he's a tremendous football player. He's got great background, great savvy play-making ability, a real natural sense about understanding how to play the game,” Carroll said.
“He and Brock [Bowers] and Jakobi [Meyers] share a lot of characteristics in how they play the game and how they make things happen and make it look effortless at times. And so, [Tyler] Lockett has been a great performer historically, and I'm thrilled to have him part of the program. I want to see how fast we can move the thing along, see if he can contribute."
