Lions Second-Round Pick Under Fire as Season Approaches

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Ennis Rakestraw Jr. makes a play at Detroit Lions practice.

The Detroit Lions took a clear strategy in last year’s NFL draft, using both of their top two picks on cornerbacks in the hopes of shoring up a once-struggling secondary.

The Lions found a starter in the first round with Terrion Arnold, but second-rounder Ennis Rakestraw Jr. has not adjusted so well. One insider believes he could end up in a fight for his spot on the depth chart in the upcoming season.

Ennis Rakestraw Must Prove Himself This Summer

SI.com’s Vito Chirco identified Rakestraw as the player with the most to prove at training camp, noting that he will need to prove himself against two veteran cornerbacks.

“He failed to make much of an impact as a rookie, and now faces serious competition for the nickel cornerback job from veterans Amik Robertson and Avonte Maddox,” Chirco wrote. “Subsequently, he’ll need to impress in training camp to fend off the two more experienced defensive backs.”

Rakestraw appeared in only eight games last season as he dealt with injuries, playing mostly on special teams. He appeared in only 8% of the team’s defensive snaps, taking on a larger role on special teams while appearing in 42% of the snaps there.

Detroit Football Network added that Rakestraw will have a potentially bigger task in training camp, needing to earn the trust of the coaching staff so he can be the primary backup in case starters Arnold or DJ Reed go down with an injury this season.

“The second-year cornerback out of Missouri, selected in the second round a year ago, spent most of his rookie year battling a nagging hamstring injury,” the report noted. “Early in that debut campaign, he was slated to start in the slot before aggravating the hamstring in pregame warmups. Now, the intention is for Rakestraw to be used exclusively on the outside. He should get a heavy workload in the preseason to show he’s up for the task.”

Big Hopes for Terrion Arnold

Arnold quickly earned the trust of the Lions’ coaching staff last season, starting 15 games and making 60 total tackles with 10 passes defensed. Deshea Townsend, the team’s defensive backs coach, said Arnold’s significant playing time helped him overcome the traditional rookie learning curve.

“Anytime you get a chance to have as many reps as he had (as a rookie), it helps you,” Townsend said, via the team’s official website.

“The only way you can get better is to get a chance to rep. He understands how they are attacking him, and he found that out by himself. ‘What do I do best? How can I make those strengths stronger and then my weaknesses, what do I do now this offseason to make them better?’ ”

Townsend added that Arnold continued to put in work this offseason, continuing to work on the weak areas of his game to improve for the coming season.

“He is trying to be the best player he can be, and that’s what it takes,” Townsend said. “You have to work on your craft, and you find out how you can get better in the offseason, and he’s working on that.”

Nathan Dougherty is a sports reporter covering the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions and Miami Dolphins. Previously he wrote for the Rochester Business Journal and served as the assistant editor of athletic trade magazines Coaching Management, Athletic Management and Training & Conditioning. He is based out of Rochester, New York, and loves everything football. More about Nathan Dougherty