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Richard Seymour, Stefen Wisniewski, Denarius Moore, Jacoby Ford, Ed Wang not dressing for the Raiders tonight. Undrafted rookie Rod Streater gets the start at WR in place of Moore for Oakland.
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PLAYERS TO WATCH
Lions
Mikel Leshoure, RB:
It?s been 19 months since Leshoure carried the football in a game. All eyes will be on No. 25 when he takes the field tonight. The Lions have huge expectations for Leshoure and he should get plenty of work tonight.
Nick Fairley, DT:
Fairley played well in the first half against the Ravens last week but we have yet to see a truly dominating game from the Lions first-round pick last year. He has a good test against a Raiders offensive line that only allowed 25 sacks last year, third fewest in the league.
Kellen Moore, QB:
Moore is no longer competing for the third quarterback spot. He?s now competing for a spot on the 53-man roster. He has a week and two preseason games to prove he?s one of the Lions best 53 players.
Raiders
Carson Palmer, QB:
The Raiders haven?t looked very good on offense this preseason and neither has Palmer. The former No. 1 pick has completedjust 53 percent of his passes with zero touchdowns and two interceptions. The Lions haven?t allowed a touchdown in the first half in two preseason games.
Darren McFadden, RB:
McFadden has to be a frustrating player for Raiders fans to cheer for. When he?s on the field, he?s as electric a runner as there is in the NFL. Unfortunately, an ankle injury, a bad hamstring, a broken orbital bone and a lisfranc injury have made him miss 14 games over the last three seasons. McFadden averaged 5.4 yards per carry in seven games last year.
Tommy Kelly, DE:
Kelly leads the Raiders with two sacks this preseason and is coming off a 7.5-sack season last year. The Lions offensive line has done a good job of keeping defenders off Stafford so far this preseason. Can that continue tonight?
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PLAYERS TO WATCH
Lions
Mikel Leshoure, RB:
It?s been 19 months since Leshoure carried the football in a game. All eyes will be on No. 25 when he takes the field tonight. The Lions have huge expectations for Leshoure and he should get plenty of work tonight.
Nick Fairley, DT:
Fairley played well in the first half against the Ravens last week but we have yet to see a truly dominating game from the Lions first-round pick last year. He has a good test against a Raiders offensive line that only allowed 25 sacks last year, third fewest in the league.
Kellen Moore, QB:
Moore is no longer competing for the third quarterback spot. He?s now competing for a spot on the 53-man roster. He has a week and two preseason games to prove he?s one of the Lions best 53 players.
Raiders
Carson Palmer, QB:
The Raiders haven?t looked very good on offense this preseason and neither has Palmer. The former No. 1 pick has completedjust 53 percent of his passes with zero touchdowns and two interceptions. The Lions haven?t allowed a touchdown in the first half in two preseason games.
Darren McFadden, RB:
McFadden has to be a frustrating player for Raiders fans to cheer for. When he?s on the field, he?s as electric a runner as there is in the NFL. Unfortunately, an ankle injury, a bad hamstring, a broken orbital bone and a lisfranc injury have made him miss 14 games over the last three seasons. McFadden averaged 5.4 yards per carry in seven games last year.
Tommy Kelly, DE:
Kelly leads the Raiders with two sacks this preseason and is coming off a 7.5-sack season last year. The Lions offensive line has done a good job of keeping defenders off Stafford so far this preseason. Can that continue tonight?
FIVE THINGS TO WATCH
Half the time
The Lions starters are expected to get about a half of playing time tonight in likely the last extended playing time until the regular-season opener against the Rams. Let's see if Stafford and Co. can score a first quarter touchdown for the first time this preseason.
Return policy
Return man Stefan Logan isn?t expected to play tonight after suffering an ankle injury against the Ravens last season. That opens the door for undrafted rookie free agent Patrick Edwards and others to return punts. Veteran Justin Miller is likely to get the kickoff return nod to start the game. Will we see Titus Young or Ryan Broyles returning punts? Both worked there this week in Logan?s absence.
Put your foot into it
The punting competition between Ryan Donahue and Ben Graham has been one of the closest in camp. It was always expected that the preseason would determine who wins the job. After two preseason games, Donahue is averaging 42.0 yards per punt and Graham 41.3. Graham has dropped three inside the 20-yard line, though, while Donahue has just one. Donahue has the longest punt of 54 yards. Could tonight decide things?
Bentley?s turn up
The Lions will continue to alternate starts between rookie Bill Bentley and Jacob Lacey during the preseason as they search for their starting right cornerback opposite Chris Houston. Bentley?s number should be called for a second time tonight based on reps in practice this week. The last time Bentley started, he had an interception, a big tackle on third down and nearly a pick-six. He was also beat deep one time.
Dirty job
The O.co Coliseum is also home to the Oakland As and that means portions of tonight?s game will be played on the dirt infield.
?You just have to chop your breakdown a little bit more,? head coach Jim Schwartz said this week. ?Maybe the same as if it was a wet field. You have to control your breaks both offensively and defensively. I don?t know if it makes a whole lot of difference inside to the lineman. But you know it?s there so you got to play.?
Half the time
The Lions starters are expected to get about a half of playing time tonight in likely the last extended playing time until the regular-season opener against the Rams. Let's see if Stafford and Co. can score a first quarter touchdown for the first time this preseason.
Return policy
Return man Stefan Logan isn?t expected to play tonight after suffering an ankle injury against the Ravens last season. That opens the door for undrafted rookie free agent Patrick Edwards and others to return punts. Veteran Justin Miller is likely to get the kickoff return nod to start the game. Will we see Titus Young or Ryan Broyles returning punts? Both worked there this week in Logan?s absence.
Put your foot into it
The punting competition between Ryan Donahue and Ben Graham has been one of the closest in camp. It was always expected that the preseason would determine who wins the job. After two preseason games, Donahue is averaging 42.0 yards per punt and Graham 41.3. Graham has dropped three inside the 20-yard line, though, while Donahue has just one. Donahue has the longest punt of 54 yards. Could tonight decide things?
Bentley?s turn up
The Lions will continue to alternate starts between rookie Bill Bentley and Jacob Lacey during the preseason as they search for their starting right cornerback opposite Chris Houston. Bentley?s number should be called for a second time tonight based on reps in practice this week. The last time Bentley started, he had an interception, a big tackle on third down and nearly a pick-six. He was also beat deep one time.
Dirty job
The O.co Coliseum is also home to the Oakland As and that means portions of tonight?s game will be played on the dirt infield.
?You just have to chop your breakdown a little bit more,? head coach Jim Schwartz said this week. ?Maybe the same as if it was a wet field. You have to control your breaks both offensively and defensively. I don?t know if it makes a whole lot of difference inside to the lineman. But you know it?s there so you got to play.?
Janikowski with a 58-yarder in warmups. Ball had 10 more yards on it.
good luck ripken8, only thing i am concerned with is the field,
Dirt portion of field very cakey- clumping in cleats of Lions. They'll need to use one of those cleat cleaners like pitchers use.
good luck ripken8, only thing i am concerned with is the field,
Dirt portion of field very cakey- clumping in cleats of Lions. They'll need to use one of those cleat cleaners like pitchers use.
hey noodle, good to see you and good luck this season.
got a bit of head start in football w/ cfl league, hope it continues with all leagues.
http://madjacksports.com/forum/showthread.php?t=489466
got a bit of head start in football w/ cfl league, hope it continues with all leagues.
http://madjacksports.com/forum/showthread.php?t=489466
