Lions DL Da’Shawn Hand is a bright spot on a dreary Detroit defense The selection of Da’Shawn Hand in the fourth round of 2018 was met with very little fanfare. The Detroit Lions had signed on Bo Davis to be their defensive line coach Eli Harold Jersey , so it was pretty much a given that they were going to be paying close attention to the various defenders coming out of Alabama’s program, but Hand was mostly an afterthought. The once highly touted high school prospect had a quiet college career, but the team thought highly enough of him to sacrifice a third-round pick in 2019 to trade back into the fourth round to select him this year. His impact was expected to be as a rotational player, but after a strong camp and preseason, he came out swinging as one of the only bright spots during the team’s disastrous opener.Hand was the No. 1 prospect in his recruiting class, above all of the quarterbacks and other players, and landing on the Alabama defense was seen to be a case of the rich getting richer. His college career was mostly forgettable T.J. Jones Jersey White , however, playing second fiddle to guys like A’Shawn Robinson, Jarron Reed, and Da’Ron Payne—all three of which would be drafted in the first two rounds of the draft. A mid-round pick himself, Hand was expected to back up his former teammate in Robinson, along with free agent signees Ricky Jean Francois and Sylvester Williams.During the preseason, Hand was one of the only standouts on defense. Like his time at Alabama Womens Darius Slay Jersey , he didn’t emerge as a pass rusher but his run defense was often stellar and some—including yours truly—projected him as a starter sooner than later. At the time, that was more due to the weakness of the front seven as a whole than it was Hand himself, but his performance in the opener against the Jets suggests we may have been underselling him.If Hand can maintain performances like that, there’s a strong possibility he steps right into the role vacated by newly benched, former starter A’Shawn Robinson. Playing at a high level on a poor defensive line is tough, but doing so as a rookie that wasn’t considered anything more than a rotational piece is nothing short of extraordinary. The concern with Hand was that “if Bo Davis couldn’t get his enormous potential out of him at Alabama, then why should we expect him to here?” As it turns out Womens Tavon Wilson Jersey , we shouldn’t have expected it. But it looks like it’s still happening anyway. Here’s to hoping it continues. With Golden Tate gone and Marvin Jones Jr. battling a knee injury, now is the time for Detroit Lions receiver Kenny Golladay. The second-year player leads the team in receiving yards and is coming into his own thus far.He’s also drawn the attention of analytic website Pro Football Focus, who credited both him and Titans receiver Corey Davis as two players living up to their potential. The PFF article does a good job using stats and highlights to illustrate the strides Golladay has made in just a year’s time. For example, Golladay’s big-play potential is obvious by his 15.4 yards per reception average—10th among NFL receivers with at least 40 catches. He’s also been credited with just one drop so far this year, meaning he’s a pretty reliable target when a catchable ball is thrown his way.Tate must have rubbed off on him a little on him because Golladay is also a threat after the ball is already in his hands.“The former Huskies’ receiver dominates with his size and physical ability in contested catch situations, but he is also a threat after the catch,” PFF’s Evan McPhillips wrote. “Through 10 weeks Tavon Wilson Jersey White , Golladay’s 5.5 yards after the catch per reception is tied for 15th among receivers with 40 or more targets.”The whole thing is worth a read, because Golladay remains one of the few reasons to still be optimistic about the future of this team. This will probably shock you, but despite the Lions allowing 16 sacks in the past two weeks, Matthew Stafford remains one of the least-pressured quarterbacks in the league.Already looking ahead to next year’s free agent class? Pro Football Focus has the top 2019 free agents at every position. Congrats to long snapper Don Muhlbach, who is the Lions’ nominee for the Art Rooney Sportsmanship Award:Justin Rogers’ five observations from Chicago does a great job breaking down the film and why Detroit’s defense gave up a bunch of big plays through the air, but also how the run defense rebounded in a big way. Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week after his big day against the Lions. A’Shawn Robinson was mic’d up for Sunday’s game against the Bears. Check out what he had to say during the game here: