A young NFL player usually takes their biggest leap in development and production from the first to second year in the league and the Detroit Lions are certainly hoping that will be the case for cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr.
Detroit's second-round pick in last year's NFL Draft, Rakestraw had an injury-riddled rookie season that saw him play in only eight games and 46 total snaps on defense. He played 95 special teams snaps across all four special teams units and showed promise there.
The Lions expect Rakestraw to compete for time in a somewhat crowded cornerback room that returns first-round pick Terrion Arnold, veterans Amik Robertson, Khalil Dorsey, Stantley Thomas-Oliver and new free-agent additions D.J. Reed, Avonte Maddox and Rock Ya-Sin.
"I've said this before, an NFL player, most of the time, the biggest jump you make of growth is between Year 1 and Year 2," Lions head coach Dan Campbell said at the NFL Annual Meetings this week. "So, he's going into Year 2. He had a couple of injuries that took him off the field (as a rookie), which is unfortunate because he was going (in games) and helping us a bit on teams, which was good."
Rakestraw was set to play a role on Detroit's defense in the nickel Week 2 vs. Tampa Bay but suffered a hamstring injury in warmups. He missed a couple weeks with the injury and that allowed Robertson to establish himself as a reliable slot player for the Lions. The hamstring injury nagged Rakestraw all season long and eventually landed him on injured reserve.
"So now what I just got to do is be available," Rakestraw said in January after the season concluded. "It kind of was a redshirt year. But you don't get to pick those situations. Don't nobody just pick to be hurt. You know, I never picked it for myself."
Campbell was clear this week when talking about the cornerback room for this upcoming season that Rakestraw can certainly earn a role if he proves himself and develops like the Lions think he can.
"I would anticipate this guy takes another step up, man," Campbell said. "We're not down on him. We're not disappointed. We expect him to go in there and compete, man. There is nothing set in stone. You draft guys where you do and you sign guys according to what you think they're going to be for you, but the best man is going to play. So, he's very much in that mix."
The Lions brought in the veterans Reed, Maddox and Ya-Sin, not because they don't think Rakestraw can be part of the equation in the secondary for Detroit next season, but because depth — something the Lions know all too well — is extremely important at every position, according to general manager Brad Holmes.
"We're still excited about Rakestraw, but unfortunately, he had injuries, and he wasn't healthy enough to provide us a little bit more clarity in terms of where he was gonna be, so, I didn't think it was going to be rational for us to depend on him," Holmes said this week when explaining some of the team's signings in free agency this offseason.
"But I know how Rakestraw's wired, and this is going to fuel him to be ready and compete. So, we're still excited about him but we're just adding depth."
Lions fans certainly know how important depth can be after all the injuries the defense suffered last season. The additions Holmes made in free agency means the Lions are expected to have some good competition at cornerback.
It will be interesting to see how Rakestraw can fit into the mix on defense and special teams during the offseason training program and into training camp. He had a good camp last year and Holmes drafted him 61st overall for a reason.
