A look at the Detroit Lions’ injury replacement options at cornerback, and Dan Campbell’s thoughts on each.
For the second straight week, the Detroit Lions are expected to be without a starting outside cornerback. Last week, Lions rookie Terrion Arnold missed the Colts game with a groin injury. While it appears he’s on track to return for Thanksgiving against the Chicago Bears, coach Dan Campbell expressed doubt in the availability of No. 1 cornerback Carlton Davis this week after he suffered a knee injury on Sunday.
That said, the Lions have a lot of options, and Campbell expressed confidence in the players they have. Let’s run through some of their options.
Emmanuel Moseley
The Lions returned Moseley from injured reserve last week after he had suffered a torn pectoral muscle during joint practices. Prior to the injury, Moseley was in line to compete for the starting nickel cornerback job, but he has plenty of experience at outside cornerback, as well.
Upon his return last week, Moseley was limited to just special teams, as the Lions eased him back into play. However, Campbell said the training wheels are off, and if the Lions need him to play a defensive role on Thursday, he’s ready to do so.
“He went out there, competed, did a good job on (special) teams for us, but yeah, I think he’s ready,” Campbell said Monday. “I think he’s ready and we’re not afraid to use him.”
Move Amik Robertson from nickel to outside cornerback
Robertson is another cornerback who has the versatility to play both cornerback spots. In fact, last year with the Las Vegas Raiders, Robertson played over 75 percent of his defensive snaps on the outside. Campbell said they’ve discussed the possibility of moving Robertson outside this week, with Moseley being the likely candidate to take over at the nickel if they choose this option.
“All things are on the table,” Campbell said. “It’s not like Amik’s never played outside. He can go out there and not bat an eye, and then you move E-man (Moseley) inside, which is great.”
Kindle Vildor
Last week without Arnold, the Lions slipped Vildor into the starting lineup. It didn’t go particularly well, as Vildor allowed several big plays in coverage—and was lucky to have not allowed a couple more. PFF credited with three catches allowed on six targets for 60 yards, but one of those incompletions was an overthrow from the quarterback and another was a completed pass in which the receiver failed to get both feet in. His 27.7 PFF coverage grade was quite literally the worst of the week among all NFL cornerback.
That said, it was his first start since the NFC Championship, and while his coverage grades have never been great, they have also never been that bad. I’m not so sure that game was reflective of Vildor’s overall talent.
Khalil Dorsey
When Davis went down against the Colts, it was Dorsey who filled in alongside Vildor. He has far less experience than Vildor—just 123 defensive snaps since entering the league in 2020—but he’s shown flashed of decent coverage skills both in training camp and the preseason.
“We’re not afraid to play Dorsey with Vildor or whatever the case is,” Campbell said. “We’ve got options and we feel good about all of them.”
