Before we get into my list of the nine biggest winners from Detroit Lions OTAs and minicamp, let’s make one thing clear: jobs are not won in the spring. Practices are very low-key, and coaches are using most of the time to start installing the playbook and getting their players up to speed mentally.
At the same time, our first look at the 2026 Detroit Lions also allows us to see where the depth chart initially stands heading into training camp. And having talked with just about every coach on staff over the past month, we also have some initial impressions to work with. So with that in mind, here are my nine biggest winners from the spring program.
TE Miles Kitselman
With Sam LaPorta limited to walkthroughs and veteran Tyler Conklin missing the last couple weeks of practice, it was very interesting to see that it was undrafted rookie Miles Kitselman getting some time with the first and second-team offense. Kitselman received a modest $115,000 guaranteed in his UDFA contract, so he’s by no means a lock to make the roster. But amongst very young depth, Kitselman appeared to be the early standout.
WR Isaac TeSlaa
All the early indications of a Year 2 jump for Isaac TeSlaa are there. He’s been uncontested third receiver alongside Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams, and coaches have really praised just how comfortable he looks.
“He is just steady, he’s steady, he is consistent for a young guy, he doesn’t get frazzled,” coach Dan Campbell said. “I mean this as a compliment, what he’s done out here is in the spring, Phase II, OTAs and all of that, it has just been very—there’s been nothing like flashy about it, and that is a good thing.”
And he’s apparently improved on several things, from his breaks to his overall strength.
“He’s done a good job of going and getting the football since he’s been here and then now at the top of his breaks, they’re so much cleaner,” receivers coach Scottie Montgomery said. “He’s so much stronger. Last year, what I like to do is I like to watch where we were, especially from an athleticism standpoint to where he is now. It’s not even close.”
G/C Juice Scruggs
When the David Montgomery trade down, I admittedly looked at Scruggs as a throw-in piece. While he had 20 games of starting experience, I figured he’d be a bubble player who would have to really prove himself to land a spot on the 53. Now, I have him just outside of a “lock.”
Why? Well, because he’s consistently been the backup center during all of the spring, and because he’s also been repping at the other two interior offensive line spots, including some brief time with the starters at left guard. On top of that, apparently the Lions front office made it clear that they really wanted him as part of the Montgomery trade.
“He really wants me here,” Scruggs told Detroit Football Network regarding Lions GM Brad Holmes. “He likes my game. So, it’s just like a relief, like a fresh start.”
DL Tyler Lacy
When the Lions went into a five-man front this spring and were in need of a 4i or 5-tech, it was almost always Tyler Lacy who was the first man up. Maybe that’s because Levi Onwuzurike is still working his way back from his torn ACL from last year, but I think it’s more than that. Let’s not forget that Lacy played 237 defensive snaps for this team last year and is still just 26 years old.
“He kind of jumped on and picked up the scheme and just took off and kind of ran with it,” Lions defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers said. “So far, I thought he’s had a really good spring. He’s another piece that adds another piece that’s gonna make probably some hard decisions for Dan and Brad down the road.”
It’s worth noting that Lacy will not only have to hold off Onwuzurike, but Ahmed Hassanein added some weight and strength and will also be competing for that big end position.
EDGE Payton Turner
Turner came to Detroit with a ton of questions about him. A former first-round pick, he’s seen his career fizzle out largely due to injury. He’s got a tough road to the roster with D.J. Wonnum and Derrick Moore added this offseason, but to Turner’s credit, he got significant time with the starters this spring, including during some of their pass rush subpackages. Maybe that was to get him caught up on the defense, but I’m still higher on him now than I was at the start of camp.
LB Jimmy Rolder
Full transparency: I was pretty skeptical of this draft pick after diving into the initial film of his one year as a starter at Michigan. But Rolder made a few really nice plays in the spring, and several coaches have praised his intelligence and ability to pick up the defense quickly.
“I’ve seen tremendous growth from him, primarily from just like the understanding of football, NFL football concepts, primarily,” Lions linebackers coach Shaun Dion Hamilton said.
“To play linebacker and safety in this system, especially where we have taken it now, it takes a lot. It takes mental capacity, and he has it,” defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said.
LB Malcolm Rodriguez
Rodriguez has had a fairly quiet spring in terms of playmaking, but right now he appears to be the unquestioned third starting linebacker alongside Derrick Barnes and Jack Campbell. Even with Rolder impressing, I don’t know if they’d consider unseating Rodriguez this early in the rookie’s career.
Plus, Rodriguez already looks a lot more like himself after his late-season return from an ACL injury in 2025.
“Malcolm’s in a great spot, man,” Hamilton said. “I’ve had an ACL myself. It’s always that first year; it’s kinda like, ‘Ah.’ But now he’s moving around great, he’s feeling great. I think that also, I was telling Shep, it’s great that he got a full offseason to be in Shep’s defense rather than AG’s (Aaron Glenn’s), with some of the changes and stuff like that.”
CB Roger McCreary
The Lions are looking to play more nickel in 2026, and all signs point to that meaning more Roger McCreary. For nearly 100% of the first-team nickel reps in the spring, it was McCreary in the lineup. He both made some plays and had some plays made against him (he was often up against Amon-Ra St. Brown, to be fair), but unless the Lions plan on shifting Avonte Maddox or Christian Izien into the slot, I think the job is likely McCreary’s to lose. Obviously, rookie Keith Abney will have a crack at it, too, but he seemed firmly with the reserves in the spring.
On top of that, the Lions clearly view McCreary as a schematic fit given his man-coverage background:
“His strong suit is playing man, and that’s what we need,” Lions defensive backs coach Deshean Townsend said. “He’s given us another competitive piece that’s inside, and he also can play outside. Because that’s what he was drafted to do at Tennessee. He’s a capable veteran that’s going to push the entire room.”
S Chuck Clark
Not many players have been hyped more than Chuck Clark this offseason. He’s clearly already established himself as a leader in a safety room that could be missing its two starters at the beginning of the season. Clark’s expert communication skills should not only help add some stability to a room in flux, but he’ll also be a good resource to young players like Izien, Thomas Harper, Dan Jackson, and Loren Strickland.
All that being said, Clark is 31 years old, and Sheppard was clear that while he’s showing off all of his intangibles right now, he’ll need to prove he still has the movement skills to make it on the field.
“When it comes to athletic ability, can he still do certain things? That is still yet to be seen, in training camp that will allow us those four-to-five-week period to see what he is capable of doing,” Sheppard said. “But, from everything I have seen so far, this is the player I saw on tape, previous to his career.”
About the Author
