We’re about a month out from the kickoff of Detroit Lions training camp. The team will have 10 camp dates open to the public beginning in late July, but the team commences practices for a few days beforehand which will have media access.

I’m going through and coming up with a checklist of things I plan on watching during the weeks of training camp and preseason. Still in the organizing state and not a complete list by any means, but I thought I’d share what players and positions I hope to focus on throughout the summer for the Lions.

In no particular order, this is my working checklist of things to watch in Lions training camp and preseason ahead of the quest for a three-peat atop the NFC North.

Replacing Frank Ragnow

The biggest question facing the Lions as they approach the 2025 season is, how does Detroit replace Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow? The heart of the offensive interior for the last several seasons, Ragnow was a bedrock piece of the Lions core. His consistency and all-around skill are not going to be easy to replace. But the Lions must try…

There are several options, which we’ve discussed quite a bit already. Second-round rookie Tate Ratledge is the most likely long-term replacement, but he’s learning center on the fly after playing right guard at Georgia. Veteran Graham Glasgow has starting experience at center in Detroit, but his play fell off badly in 2024 and he’s not getting younger. Kingsley Eguakun is a player head coach Dan Campbell mentioned unprompted as a viable contender, though he’s undersized entering his second season as an undrafted rookie out of Florida last year.

Of course, if Ratledge or Glasgow isn’t playing right guard, someone has to. Someone also has to step into the top interior reserve role, where Glasgow has thrived throughout his career; his best work at center came in injury-related relief for Ragnow and moving inside from guard. Sorting out the roles between Ratledge, Glasgow, Eguakun, fifth-round rookie Miles Frazier, vet Kayode Awosika, Netane Muti and perhaps even Colby Sorsdal and Michael Niese is going to be an arduous task for venerable OL coach Hank Fraley.

Can Hendon Hooker take the next step?

I’ve been a fairly vocal, longtime supporter and advocate for Hendon Hooker as the Lions No. 2 quarterback. I still am, but there is a lot more to prove in the summer of 2025 for the third-year QB than ever before.

The Lions brought in Kyle Allen, a legit competitor for the job of backing up Jared Goff. Allen is a vet with starting experience and an interesting skillset that bridges the difference between Goff and what Hooker offers … which to this point has proven almost entirely hypothetical.

Hooker has to prove worthy of the No. QB job. It’s no longer handed to him on the fact that he was a third-round pick in 2023 and a pet project of Lions assistant GM Ray Agnew, among others. Potential can only last so long, and Hooker is at the point where he needs to dmeonstrate that his considerable potential can produce real NFL results.

Our looks at Hooker over the last 12 months have been a frustratingly incomplete mix of “hell yeah” and “oh no”. Something has to give in the coming weeks. I’m still confident in Hooker’s ability to bury Allen on the depth chart and take a big step forward, but it’s time for it to happen. If not, the Lions (and my own rosy draft evaluation) probably need to rethink Hooker going forward.

Marcus Davenport as EDGE2

The OTA sessions weren’t padded, so it’s important to not get overly excited about anything in regards to the trenches from those spring sessions. Yet it was hard not to notice just how awesome (using that term literally) Marcus Davenport looked as a first-team defensive end.

Yeah, I know. The injuries. Trust me, I know. His durability, or lack thereof, is a massive wet blanket on the excitement. But after seeing him moving and just looking physically so impressive, it’s easily understandable why the Lions love Davenport. He is EXACTLY what Dan Campbell and new DC Kelvin Sheppard want across from Aidan Hutchinson: big, strong, long, smart, athletic, relentlessly aggressive.

Davenport is the starter in that EDGE role until proven otherwise. I don’t even think it’s an actual competition if Davenport is healthy. Big “if”, given his rather lengthy proven inability to stay on the field. I’m fascinated to see just how good the Detroit pass rush can be with a healthy Davenport, even if it’s only in joint practices and training camp. Because if the Davenport we saw in 2024 and in OTAs is in the lineup, ooh baby!

WR depth roles

Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams are the top dogs at wideout. Both topped 1,000 receiving yards a year ago and their skills and personalities nicely play off one another. After that potent combination, Detroit has some questions.

Most of the answers to those questions are likely to end up being quite positive, but they do need to get answered. Vet Kalif Raymond brings a speed element to the outside, but he’s rarely been more than a subpackage player. Raymond is also a dang good return specialist, a role both he and the Lions take quite seriously.

Rookie Isaac TeSlaa offers outstanding size and athleticism. The third-rounder doesn’t have the production pelts on the wall as a receiver, however; he was a Wing-T quarterback in high school who is still learning the nuances of playing wideout after transitioning at Hillsdale and then Arkansas.

Big Tim Patrick is back after a sure-handed debut season in Detroit. The 31-year-old caught 33 passes for the Lions after missing the prior two seasons with injuries. Those injuries are a requisite part of Patrick’s story, unfortunately. There are a few newcomers who are scrapping for roster spots too.

Chief among them is seventh-round rookie Dominic Lovett. As a receiver, Lovett appears eminently redundant with Raymond as an undersized outside speedster without a lot of proven variety to his game. Is there room for both? We’re about to find out…

Ronnie Bell, Malik Taylor, undrafted rookies Jakobie Keeney-James and Jackson Meeks and the inimitable Tom Kennedy are all in the mix, too. Kennedy gets counted out every summer, yet here he is for a sixth straight offseason. This brewing battle for (likely) practice squad spots is quietly one of the most intriguing facets of Lions camp and preseason, where these aspirants figure to get considerable opportunities to prove they can be the one who can.

Contract talks

It’s an inevitable part of the summer for every NFL team. Some players want new deals, contract extensions or more security. That’s the case with defensive captain Alex Anzalone, who skipped all the voluntary workouts in search of either more money or guaranteed money in his current deal, which pays him nothing guaranteed in salary.

Aidan Hutchinson and Jameson Williams are both kicking off Year 4 as 2022 first-round picks. Detroit picked up the fifth-year options on both, so nothing has to be done this offseason; they’re each under contract through the 2026 season. Yet it’s common for standouts to sign extensions at this juncture. For Hutchinson especially, the price tag only goes up with each new sack artist signing extensions around the league. Questions about the long-term fates of both figure to come up frequently.

New coordinators

Detroit is breaking in two new, albeit familiar, coordinators in John Morton and Kelvin Sheppard. That means changes to the schemes on both sides of the ball as Morton puts his own stamp on the offense and Sheppard imparts his vision on the defense.

From what little we’ve seen in OTAs, the changes are not going to be radical. Casual fans might not even notice changes on the offense. I’m more intrigued by the change in coaching style and persona on both sides of the ball.

Morton isn’t wound nearly as tightly as his OC predecessor Ben Johnson, who was an exacting tactician who harped on minutiae. It worked very well for Johnson in Detroit. The players, notably Jared Goff, thrived with Johnson’s upbeat intensity. That’s not Morton’s personality or approach to coaching–which isn’t either good or bad, just different.

On defense, Aaron Glenn is the only coordinator we’ve known under Dan Campbell. Sheppard has been a major presence, but he’s stepping up into a bigger role. Again, different. Unknown. Watching the new coordinators and how they handle practice situations, coaching their coaches, things like that, are definitely something I hope to study in training camp.

We will certainly go more in-depth on all of these topics, as well as some others that materialize, over the coming weeks. It’s never too early to get ready for what’s coming in Lions land.