Lions camp observations: Hooker sharp, Reed absent, Vaki exits

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Allen Park — Here are some notes and observations from the Detroit Lions’ Monday morning training camp practice.

● The team continued to have strong participation numbers. Linebacker Anthony Pittman returned to action, while linebacker Alex Anzalone (hamstring), cornerback Ennis Rakestraw (chest) and defensive end Al-Quadian Muhammad remained sidelined.

Those were expected absences, each confirmed by coach Dan Campbell before the session. Cornerback DJ Reed was the only unexpected player missing. The starter’s reps with the first team were primarily filled by Rock-Ya Sin.

● About halfway through individual drills, Jahmyr Gibbs and Sione Vaki left the running back group to go run routes on air with the receivers.

Sans defenders, Gibbs’ movement skills still impress. He’s so fluid, from his release off the line to his tempo through the top of his route, whether running slant, dig or out patterns. The star dual-threat’s hands also look as good as ever. He took a big step forward as a receiver last season, and I could easily see him taking another jump this year, particularly if the Lions move forward with using more two-back formations.

Vaki’s overall skill set as a receiver isn’t far behind his teammate. Unfortunately, Vaki exited practice early during the drill with a left leg injury and did not return.

● Running backs coach Tashard Choice, working a ball security drill, donned a pair of black boxing gloves and was aggressive with both his words and his fists, trying to knock the ball free from his guys. To the backs’ credit, no one lost a fumble.

● Backup quarterback Hendon Hooker still tends to hold on to the ball too long at times. Nonetheless, he’s slowly chipping away at the percentage of reps where he doesn’t get rid of it in a timely manner.

More noteworthy, Hooker’s velocity and accuracy are on a sharp upswing. He’s had a number of crisp intermediate throws during the first couple of days of practice. He seems to be forming good chemistry with rookie receivers Isaac TeSlaa and Dominic Lovett.

● TeSlaa had multiple grabs today, and what stands out is how smooth and effortless his acceleration is off the line of scrimmage. He has outstanding linear speed and tracks the ball well downfield.

Where TeSlaa appears to have significant room for growth is when changing direction. His movements at the top of routes, particularly where he needs to decelerate and reaccelerate, can get clunky, giving back the separation he establishes early in a pattern.

● Kicker Jake Bates battled some early inconsistencies. After making four short kicks between 34 and 43 yards, Bates sent efforts from 43 and 38 wide left, finishing 7-for-9 on the day.

● There’s only so much to be gleaned from the offensive and defensive line without pads. Still, edge rusher Marcus Davenport is looking good. He shed a block for a run stop near the line of scrimmage. Then, a few snaps later, during the same full-team segment, Davenport spun past tight end Brock Wright, flushing quarterback Jared Goff from the pocket and forcing a throwaway.

● The first-team defense, without Reed, had an outstanding seven-on-seven stretch against Detroit’s top offensive group. Amik Robertson immediately shut down a checkdown throw to Wright, safety Brian Branch’s tight coverage of Jameson Williams forced the receiver out of bounds on a deep corner pattern, Terrion Arnold broke up a crosser to Wright, and Jack Campbell capped the drill, forcing an incompletion with tight coverage on Sam LaPorta. On most of those snaps, Goff wasn't able to get the ball to his first or second read.

Arnold had an animated practice, overall, loudly chirping at his teammates when he beat them in drills, including his special teams reps.

● Nate Lynn, who popped during last camp/preseason as an undrafted rookie before he suffered a season-ending injury, is trying to pick up where he left off. The edge rusher dipped under the outside shoulder of offensive tackle Giovanni Manu on Monday for a would-be sack.

● The catch of the day belonged to David Montgomery, who stabbed a ball out of the air with one hand on a throw behind him before turning upfield for a nice gain.