James Houston is working to solve a problem to get back to being 'The Problem'

Allen Park – The Detroit Lions' second training camp practice ended 20 minutes earlier and the majority of the players had exited the field. A handful stopped for a photo-op with multi-championship boxer Claressa Shields before heading inside the newly minted Meijer Performance Center, while third-year linebacker James Houston was busy throwing punches of his own, firing stiff jabs at a stationary dummy, simulating pass-rush moves alongside teammates Derrick Barnes and Mathieu Betts.

Houston is in the early rounds of a fight to get his young career back on track after a rocky training camp and a broken ankle two games into the 2023 season derailed an opportunity to build on one of the most electric stretches a rookie Lions defender has ever seen. 

To his credit, turning the tide is kind of Houston's thing. When his college career wasn't going as planned at the University of Florida, he transferred to Jackson State where he was able to tap into previously unrealized pass-rushing potential and become "The Problem." In one season at the school, he racked up 16.5 sacks and seven forced fumbles, leading to his selection in the sixth round of the 2022 draft. 

Unfortunately, the production boom that got Houston to the big leagues didn't initially port. An uninspiring offseason prevented him from making the roster. Instead, he found his way to Detroit's practice squad for extra development. But it wasn't long before there were rumblings inside the building that the team might have something in the young edge rusher who was giving starting offensive tackles Taylor Decker and Penei Sewell daily fits. 

The promotion finally came ahead of that year's Thanksgiving game and Houston came out swinging. He had 2.0 sacks in his first game, and at least one each of the next three contests. He finished with a staggering 8.0 in seven games, second on the roster to only Aidan Hutchinson's 9.5. 

The sacks were unquestionably welcomed, and had fans dreaming of a Hutchinson/Houston tandem terrorizing opposing quarterbacks for years to come, but the coaching staff wanted Houston to be more versatile, capable of playing a bigger role in the scheme for when inevitable pass-rushing droughts hit. 

Last offseason, they asked him to do more off the ball. The transition was a struggle and Houston found himself pinned to the back end of the depth chart, causing some outside observers to speculate the nearly inconceivable possibility he might not make the team a year after setting the league on fire. 

This year, nearly all the way back from the ankle injury, Houston is trying to remind everyone of his ability and potential. During Thursday's practice, you saw the good and some of the needed improvement required to gain the trust of his coaches. He remains a pass-rushing force, but he also got chewed out for failing to set an edge on a run play. He then recovered from the miscue to make a leaping deflection on a pass down the seam that otherwise would have gone for a chunk gain. 

"I have things to clean up, but it's the second day," Houston said. "I'm trying to not be too hard on myself because I know the coaches will be. That's fine. I'll clean it up and get better as we go. …I missed a year, so I feel like I'm behind. Once I catch on, I feel I'm going to catch fire."

Issues with the ankle — which coach Dan Campbell called a clean break last year — lingered longer than expected. Even during OTAs and mandatory minicamp in June, Houston admits it didn't feel right. A month later, he's much closer to normal, even if he's not ready to declare himself 100%. 

The importance of ankle flexibility to an edge rusher cannot be overstated, especially for Houston, who is a nightmare for blockers because of his Gumby-like ability to bend the corner.

No one seems particularly concerned about that trait getting all the way back to where it was pre-injury. It's more about being mentally sharp and assignment sound with his other, added schematic responsibilities. 

“Well, I know this, he’s in shape," Campbell said. "He knows he’s got to be able to handle the SAM linebacker position for us, and no different than what we just talked about, consistency. We have to be able to trust that he’s going to do what he needs to do, and that whatever defense we call, he’s going to handle it mentally and we can trust that. 

"We anticipate him taking another step forward."

Houston is smartly attaching himself to Barnes. The two have similar builds and roles within the scheme, but possess different strengths. Barnes took a massive leap forward in his third season last year, in large part due to his improvements mentally, which centered around advancing his understanding of the entire defense and how he fit in it.

That's the gap the Lions need Houston to close. In turn, he’s helping Barnes improve his pass-rush arsenal so he can be more effective when asked to line up along the line of scrimmage. 

While Houston aims to round out his game, know he’s not neglecting his calling card. He continued his offseason tradition of working with multiple pass-rush specialists, including the "Sack Samurai" Dez Walker, the "Sack Sensei" Javon Gopie and Brandon "B.T." Jordan, who now works for Ohio State.

With the Lions, Houston is gleaning additional knowledge from new position coach Terrell Williams, who has his pupil studying some "old school guys who look a lot like me." That teaching strategy worked for Chuck Smith, another pass-rush guru who got hired by the Baltimore Ravens last year. He taught Houston a rush move invented and mastered by Lions legend Bubba Baker, and it repeatedly showed up on film during Houston’s electric rookie campaign.

“I'm just trying to elevate my game, taking that next step in my career from being just a pass-rusher to being on the field a significant amount of downs to affect the game,” Houston said. “…I'm always going to make plays. That's kind of just the player I am. But being able to stay within the scheme and being able to do the right things on every down, that's where I have to take my game.”