Tuesday recap: James Houston cut, Amik Robertson a possibility outside, adding QB Jones hasn't been discussed

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Allen Park — Unable to recapture the impact of his electric rookie season two years earlier, the Detroit Lions opted to part ways with defensive end James Houston on Tuesday.

“It just didn’t (work out),” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “We had James up for a number of games, came back off the injury and got back, and it just never quite worked out. And look, wish him the best of luck. Sometimes you just need a fresh start, and this could be great for him.”

Houston had seemingly flirted with getting cut coming out of training camp the past two years, spending much of both offseasons repping with the third- and fourth-string defensive groupings.

A sixth-round draft pick out of Jackson State in 2022, Houston spent the first half of his rookie season on Detroit's practice squad before a string of impressive performances on scout team earned him a mid-year call-up. He went on a tear with the opportunity, racking up 8.0 sacks in seven games.

But as the team worked on expanding his versatility last offseason, he slipped to the bottom of the rotation. And any hope he had of climbing out of the hole was derailed when he suffered a broken ankle covering a kickoff during the team’s Week 2 game against Seattle.

Houston continued to struggle with off-ball assignments this offseason, eventually returning to exclusively playing along the line of scrimmage. A healthy scratch for Detroit’s early-season games, he got an opportunity for expanded playing time following season-ending injuries to starters Aidan Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport.

Still, improvements were modest and the scheme fit remained poor. The Lions prefer pocket crushers on the edges, while the 245-pound Houston was always best bending the edge with almost unnatural ankle flexibility.

With the recent addition of Za’Darius Smith via a trade, Houston’s role declined again. He logged four snaps in last Sunday’s game against the Colts prior to his release.

No talk of adding veteran QB

Former New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones is reportedly looking to join a contender after being granted his release over the weekend, with the Lions among the teams he’s been linked to by national reporters.

I asked Campbell if there was fire behind that speculative smoke.

“We haven’t really talked about that,” Campbell said. “The name’s come up, but it’s not like we’ve sat down and talked, so I don’t want to give you a yes or a no.”

The thinking would be Jones would offer a more experienced backup if something were to happen to starter Jared Goff. That said, Campbell expressed confidence with the development of the team’s current option, Hendon Hooker.

“He’s progressed,” Campbell said. “We told him from day one, we just need growth. We need you to grow every week and we’ve given him opportunities in practice, good on good, to run our offense. As much as we can put him under pressure, we’ve done that, and I would say he’s progressed.

“That’s the best way to say it,” Campbell said. “Every guy grows at his own rate and he’s growing. Listen, if the time comes, he’s got to be ready to play. Period. It doesn’t matter whether he’s ready or not. He’ll go in there and there’s things that he does well and those are things that we would call that I think he’ll have success with, and you go from there.”

Secondary shuffle discussed

It’s not looking like offensive tackle Taylor Decker, cornerback Carlton Davis III or return man Kalif Raymond will be ready for Thursday’s game against Chicago. Campbell said the outlook for those three players hasn’t changed since Monday.

Campbell was more positive about wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and running back David Montgomery, who had also been listed as projected non-participants for Monday’s practice.

Because it’s come up a lot in the chat and on social media, I asked Campbell if there was any consideration being given to playing nickel corner Amik Robertson on the outside, in place of Davis.

“We talked about it,” Campbell acknowledged. “It’s up for discussion. It’s hard to say, there again, on a walkthrough. …It’s hard to do that, but all things are on the table. It’s not like Amik’s never played outside. He can go out there and not bat an eye, and then you move (Emmanuel Moseley) E-man inside, which is great.

“We have all options on the table,” Campbell said. “We’re not afraid to play (Khalil) Dorsey with (Kindle) Vildor or whatever the case is. We’ve got options and we feel good about all of them.”

Robertson primarily played on the outside for the Raiders last season.

I also asked about the plans at punt return. Campbell said he’s still working through the decision with practice squaders Tom Kennedy and Maurice Alexander both in play.

Campbell also said he’ll probably stick with St. Brown in the role, but the comment was clearly sarcastic.

The popular kids

There have been times in recent years when the Lions have struggled to put a single player on the league’s list of the top-50 merchandise movers. Not anymore. In a mid-year report released by the NFLPA, the Lions have five on that list, including three in the top 20.

Near the top are defensive end Aidan Hutchinson and wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who were No. 6 and No. 7, the top sellers among non-quarterbacks.

Rounding out Detroit’s representation on the list are running back Jahmyr Gibbs (No. 16), quarterback Jared Goff (No. 28) and tight end Sam LaPorta (No. 45).

Coordinator change brings scheme tweaks

The Bears recently made a change at offensive coordinator, dismissing Shane Waldron after just nine games and turning things over to passing-game coordinator Thomas Brown. The early results have been promising, particularly with the performance of rookie quarterback Caleb Williams.

I asked Campbell if there were any notable differences between the play-callers that were discernable through the two games.

“There’s a lot more quick game, get the ball out, pretty simple progressions that he’s doing really well with,” Campbell said. “You watch him, bam, bam, bam, he’s working across the board, flipping his hips, processes it pretty fast, and if it’s not there then he takes off.

“There is some shift, motions, perfect plays, kills, so there’s a little bit of that that’s different than it was, but they’re still doing some of the same things,” Campbell continued. “ I think they’re trying to give him the best opportunity to have success or with any offense as much as you can.”

No charges for Jamo

This week, it was reported there will be no charges filed against receiver Jameson Williams following a review of the Detroit Police Department’s decision to not arrest him for improperly transporting a registered gun without a concealed carry license.

That brought a fresh batch of questions to the coach about the message the team had conveyed to the young receiver after the lesson-learning opportunity.

Turns out, nothing new to add.

“We had this conversation with Jamo back, I guess right before his suspension started, somewhere in there,” Campbell said. “So this has been talked about. We’re all good. (We told him,) ‘Hey, you got to be mindful of where you’re at, be on top of your details, get that, all eyes are on you.’ And he’s good. We hit it and he understands that.”