Miles Killebrew entered his fourth training camp with the Detroit Lions firmly on the roster bubble. Killebrew has flashed at times as a strong safety and occasional LB in his first two years, but his playing time in 2018 came almost exclusively on special teams.
He needs to make a big impression this summer to make the Lions for a fourth season. So far, so good for Killebrew.
Coach Matt Patricia likes what he’s seen from Killebrew in training camp and the first two preseason games. Specifically, Patricia is encouraged by Killebrew’s newfound aggression on defense.
“I think Miles has really grown a lot between last year and this year, especially defensively,” Patricia said before Monday’s practice in Allen Park. “It’s not perfect by any means, but it’s certainly much more aggressive. Once you get comfortable as a defensive player, you tend to play a little more aggressively. You tend to understand when there are certain situations when you can take some chances, maybe have some opportunities to run through the line of scrimmage a little bit more and see some things a little bit quicker. I think he’s really capitalized on those.”
Killebrew is also showing his knowledge within the defense and reacting quicker and more authoritatively. Patricia has seen the progress,
“I think he’s had some pretty good plays where he’s diagnosed what the offense was doing, saw a situation – again the defensive structure, but there’s a little bit of freedom within the structure as long as you do it right. I think he’s done a good job of identifying those areas or those plays and made some good decisions with it.”
Killebrew remains on the Lions roster bubble, but he’s helped himself with a strong, aggressive summer.
