Aidan Hutchinson talks about how his leg has felt in practice
Aidan Hutchinson talks about a recent play in Lions practice that gave him confidence his leg is recovered from last season’s injury, Aug. 21, 2025.
The Detroit Lions started preparations for their season opener against the Green Bay Packers without one of their stars from training camp.
Rookie wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa was one of three regulars who did not take part in practice Tuesday, along with running back Sione Vaki and linebacker Trevor Nowaske.
The Lions will release their first injury report of the season Wednesday.
A third-round pick out of Arkansas, TeSlaa caught 10 passes for 146 yards and three touchdowns in four games this preseason. He is expected to open the season as the Lions’ No. 4 receiver, and his emergence helped clear the path for the Lions to trade Tim Patrick to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“He just came in and did his job (during training camp) and what we would see is he would take it from the meeting room to the walk-through to the individual drills to the practice tape,” Lions receivers coach Scottie Montgomery said. “And when he failed in practice he very rarely failed again in that same detail. So that lets us know first of all he cares but it lets us know he’s in his playbook.
“When you’re in your playbook, you’re going to get the respect of your people in the room and when your mental errors are low you get the respect of the people in the room. A lot of other people on the outside, they see playmaking and they think that’s it. Well, you got to be in the right spot, especially now when the lights are truly on.”
Vaki missed the Lions’ final preseason game with a hamstring injury that nagged him throughout camp. He is not expected to play Sunday against the Packers.
Nowaske, who played 14 games for the Lions last season, is expected to play a key special-teams role and as a backup linebacker this fall. He tied for the team-lead with nine tackles in the Lions’ exhibition finale against the Houston Texans.
Center Graham Glasgow, who was injured in the Lions’ final practice of training camp, was a participant in practice Tuesday and Lions coach Dan Campbell said he will be good to play against the Packers.
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.