Lions
With OC Ben Johnson taking over this offseason, he and Lions QB Jared Goff sat down together to design what Detroit’s new-look offense would be.
“We watched a lot of stuff,” Goff said via Tim Twentyman of the team website. “We watched my old stuff. We watched stuff that he likes from his past. Just kind of went through every piece of the past game in terms of how we want to build it and how he wants to build it, mostly.”
Goff adds a lot of his input was taken into account going back to the things he succeeded with while playing for the Rams. The offense should feature more play-action and the ability for Goff to manipulate the tempo to get defenses uncomfortable.
“It’s exciting for me,” Goff said. “Being in year seven now I feel like I’ve earned kind of having that voice a little bit and he’s given it to me, which is fun.”
Packers
Packers RB Kylin Hill felt like he was hitting his stride as the No. 3 running back on the team’s depth chart before suffering a torn ACL against the Cardinals back in October.
“What’s tough is not being able to play and just watching,” Hill said, via Wes Kodlkewicz of Packers.com. “Because I’ve been a part of the game for so long. It’s part of the game. What you gotta do, you gotta do. This was my first big injury, so it was a new adjustment for me. But now I’m feeling like myself again. I’m very confident I can cut. I’ve been jogging and am able to do everything. It’s all about getting my confidence back.”
Hill certainly has the support of his teammates who have had similar injuries such as CB Jaire Alexander, LT David Bakhtiari, and RB AJ Dillon.
“I know how much it’s hurting him to not be out there,” said Dillon of Hill. “He loves football, loves the game, so I’m excited for him to get back whenever he’s healthy enough to be full go and they give him the green light for him to show everybody what he has.”
Vikings
Vikings OLB coach Mike Smith praised the depth of his position group. Minnesota will obviously count on Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith as big-time, Pro Bowl-caliber players, but there’s also a stiff competition for roster spots and roles with others like D.J. Wonnum, Patrick Jones and Janarius Robinson.
Wonnum had eight sacks after playing a lot when Hunter was hurt in 2021, but some of the advanced metrics suggest that may have been some fools gold. Jones and Robinson were third and fourth-round picks who did little to nothing as rookies. Still, Smith believes there’s a lot of potential.
“This is a really good room,” he said via the Athletic’s Chad Graff. “I’m not just saying that to pee on your leg and tell you it’s raining. It’s a really good, young group. … I’m going to tell you right now that Patrick Jones has the best get-off in the group, and it might not even be close right now — that’s how good his get-off is. J-Rob, the first thing you say about him is he’s long. He’s another guy who can scratch his ankles standing up. He’s got the longest arms in the room. And D.J. is one of those guys that can just do it all. Probably the smartest kid in the room. They’ve got a lot to learn, and a lot of them are still like rookies, but they’ve got huge potential and I’m very excited about that group.”
Looking for the latest NFL Insider News & Rumors?
Be sure to follow NFL Trade Rumors on TWITTER and FACEBOOK for breaking NFL News and Rumors for all 32 teams!
