Stock report: Swanson up, Reiff down for Lions
A look at some notable individual performances during the Lions’ 30-9 loss to the Ravens on Saturday night:
Stock up: Khyri Thornton
Among the first men off the bench in the contest, the third-year defensive tackle made an impact early and often, recording two tackles for loss and a sack against the Ravens. Locked in a roster battle at a deep position group, Thornton proved worthy of a job by playing at a high level in the most meaningful exhibition contest.
Stock down: Cole Wick
As a receiver, Wick continues to do fine. He had two grabs for 20 yards against Baltimore, including a 14-yard gain where he navigated through traffic for a solid chunk after the catch. But the blocking continues to be an issue. A week after getting blown past for a sack, the rookie tight end lost his assignment on a failed early run, got called for a holding that negated a touchdown and had a miscommunication with offensive tackle Riley Reiff that led to a pass-rusher getting pressure.
Stock down: Riley Reiff
Speaking of Reiff, the veteran tackle didn’t look anything like the consistent performer he’s been all offseason. He was beaten multiple times off the edge, giving up one sack and a couple more pressures. He also got hit with a pair of penalties in the contest, including a personal foul for pulling a player off the pile, which is a point of emphasis for NFL officials.
Lions look unprepared in exhibition loss to Ravens
Stock up: Ameer Abdullah
It wasn’t a long day of work for the second-year running back, but he showed he has the ability to breathe life into the Lions’ listless ground game. Abdullah had a nice gain of 11 yards around the left edge and showed no ill effects from a hard hit at the end of the play. He followed it up with a 15-yard scoring scamper around the right edge, but the touchdown was wiped out by Wick’s hold. The only downside from Abdullah’s performance was a dropped pass on third down that likely would have kept an early drive alive.
Stock down: Jimmy Landes
Granted an opportunity to work the entire game, the rookie long snapper didn’t look up to the challenge. The location of his 10 efforts were all over the map, with punt snaps coming in high and wide and a pair of field goal snaps too low. Veteran Don Muhlbach has had a near-flawless camp snapping the ball and should maintain his job, based not only on Landes’ performance against the Ravens, but the offseason as a whole.
Stock up: Travis Swanson
The much-maligned center has shown steady improvement through the offseason and really shined against the Ravens. While the rest of the starting offensive line was either blowing blocks or drawing penalties, Swanson was assignment sound as both a run blocker and pass protector, even getting some much needed push at times.
Stock down: Jeremy Kerley
This is a case where playing time could be indicative of time running out for a veteran player. Kerley didn’t take a single offensive snap in the contest, yielding his role as the backup slot receiver and return man to undrafted rookie Jace Billingsley for the night.