The Jake Bates Show: Preseason Game 2 Recap

 

        We've officially two weeks into preseason folks. The Lions played the Chiefs in a thrilling game that ended with Jake Bates putting the metaphorical seal on him making this years 53-man roster. This weeks performance by the boys in Honolulu blue, was a much better showing from them than last week. Patrick Mahomes played two consecutive series in which the second team defense held him to 6 total points. An impressive feat, all things considered. Some of my favorite players from yesterday's game were Kindle Vildor, Sione Vaki, Isaiah Williams, Abraham Beauplan, Kaden Davis, and Khalil Dorsey. On the defensive side of the ball, Vildor and Dorsey both showed why they're worthy of a roster spot this season. Both players had multiple key tackles early in the game and Vildor especially showed out in man-to-man coverage. On the offensive side of the field, Vaki played well and showed why he would be an asset on 3rd down situations. Kaden Davis may have secured his spot as this teams X receiver, with Donovan Peoples-Jones struggling mightily. Davis and Sudfield connected for a 61-yard touchdown in which he was able to create some space from his defender and sneak through the secondary, into the end zone. Also, if Isaiah Williams doesn't get a spot on this Lions roster, I will riot. I don't care if he's another slot receiver, he has made enough plays this season to warrant keeping him. Do the right thing Mr. Holmes! 

        Unfortunately, Saturday's game wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Nate Sudfield may have reinforced the teams decision to cut him in lieu of keeping Hendon Hooker. Despite his stat line, he missed a few throws in key moments and threw an interception in which the Lions were lucky enough that the Chiefs weren't able to capitalize off the turnover. For what it's worth, I don't think Nate played all that bad, he just didn't play good enough for the Lions to want to keep a third quarterback. The other person that struggled on the offense was Peoples-Jones. He was slow, his routes were sloppy, and despite having the favor from the Lions front office, he played flat-out horrible. I think yesterday's game was the final straw for Brad and I don't expect to see DPJ on the team come Monday. The only other negative notable from the game yesterday was that our depth at special teams is another red flag that needs to be addressed. Multiple fumbles by the Lions returners, and a ton of missed tackles alongside some great returns from the Chiefs made it profoundly clear that outside of Jameson Willaims, this team doesn't have that position locked down. I wouldn't mind seeing a combination of Sione Vaki and Isaiah Williams if we need a reason to keep either one of these players. They played well enough to be in that conversation.  

Notable Stats from Preseason Game #2:

• Hendon Hooker: 12/15 for 150 yards, 1 (rushing) TD, and 0 INT's
• Sione Vaki: 6 carries for 22 yards, 4 receptions for 60 yards
• Isaiah Williams: 6 receptions for 71 yards
• Kaden Davis: 2 receptions for 64 yards, 1 TD
• Khalil Dorsey: 5 Total tackles, 4 Solo tackles, 1 TFL
• Jake Bates: 4/4 FG (55, 23, 32 yards), 0/1 XP

Up Next - Pittsburgh Steelers (Home) @ 12:00pm

        This will be the biggest game of some players lives. By my count, we've got 35-36 roster spots that are already secured. This means that there are about 17 spots left for 52 players. There's going to be some guys that will find spots on other teams, I think our team is that talented. It's going to be an interesting week. It will also be an opportunity to see an old NFC North friend. Justin fields is now backing up Russell Wilson in Pittsburgh. A once promising talent is now looking for a chance to prove that he is talented enough to be a starter in this league. In my opinion, I don't think he is a starter, but I hope he proves me wrong.