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Detroit Lions wide receiver Dominic Lovett (19). Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Lions' Grades: Sloppiness Stings Momentum

Originally posted on Detroit Lions on SI
By Christian Booher | Last updated Aug 1, 2025 7:48 AM ET

Thursday night marked the return of NFL football, and the Detroit Lions were on center stage.

Detroit traveled to Canton, Ohio to take on the Los Angeles Chargers in the annual Hall of Fame Game. It was a rough outing for Dan Campbell's team, as the Chargers looked much more efficient and dominated the Lions 34-7.

Here are grades for the Lions' performance against the Los Angeles Chargers in Thursday's Hall of Fame Game.

Quarterbacks: D

Neither of the Lions' two competitors for the backup job behind Jared Goff inspired much confidence Thursday, as Kyle Allen and Hendon Hooker couldn't get the offense into any sort of consistent rhythm.

Allen threw an early pick on an out route that was undercut by Nikko Reed, as the ball didn't have quite enough on it to get to the intended receiver. He had the offense moving on the following drive, but lofted a ball into double coverage intended for Isaac TeSlaa that was also picked off.

Hooker struggled as well, producing just three total first-downs in four drives. His previous bouts with inconsistency reared their ugly head, as he appeared hesitant and his timing was off. His first series ended with an ugly miss, where he threw into the middle of the field in the direction of multiple Chargers defenders with no intended Lion in sight.

The Tennessee product had his last pass picked off when the ball was wrestled away from Dominic Lovett. Little clarity was gained in this position battle, and next week's matchup with Atlanta will be an opportunity for both to move past Thursday's struggles.

Running backs: C+

Without Sione Vaki or Kye Robichaux and starters Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery not in action, the first half was surprisingly an opportunity for Craig Reynolds to shoulder plenty of work. Despite his status as an established third option, he toted the rock 10 times for 38 yards and a score.

The lack of overall depth at the position necessitated this, as Jabari Small and Jacob Saylors are both fairly new to the organization. Small signed leading up to camp, while Saylors joined the organization on Tuesday.

Small had 11 carries for 35 yards, while Saylors contributed two carries for six yards. Saylors could be a player to watch in the coming weeks, especially if Vaki or Robichaux aren't healed enough to play, as he was an All-UFL player with the St. Louis Battlehawks.

Wide receivers: C-

Plenty of eyes were on the Lions' receiving corps in Thursday's game, as the position group boasts two intriguing draft picks in Isaac TeSlaa and Dominic Lovett. Both players got multiple opportunities, with Lovett being the most-targeted receiver of the night.

Lovett had an early drop on a dig route over the middle, but rebounded to show some nice wiggle on his first catch. Having the ball ripped away on the late-game interception was not a great moment, but he had a nice chain-moving catch on fourth-and-short in the first half and finished with five grabs for 31 yards.

TeSlaa, meanwhile, had back-to-back 20-plus-yard catches. His speed was on display particularly on the first catch, as was his size when he finished the catch and run with a shoulder into a defender's midsection. However, he got bumped off what appeared to be a fade route that led to an errant throw and interception later in that drive.

The only other wide receiver to catch a pass in Thursday's game was Jackson Meeks, who hauled in a five-yard pass on his only target.

Tight ends: C

The Lions relied on Shane Zylstra for most of the night as the leading traditional tight end, but there were fullback packages that belonged to undrafted free agent Zach Horton. The Indiana product showed he can handle it, and could see an extended role in the team's play-action game next week.

Kenny Yeboah went down with an injury at the end of the third quarter, but he returned to the game in the early fourth. Aside from Sam LaPorta and Brock Wright, the Lions don't have any other depth than the three that played the position on Thursday at this stage.

Offensive line: C-

The Lions' offensive line was spotty on Thursday, as the group of backups were able to generate time for Allen and Hooker but were inconsistent overall. Reynolds averaged just under four yards a carry, which is promising, but there were some issues.

Hooker took two sacks, one in which he was scrambling around and the other when he evaded one sack and tried to get away from the rush but couldn't. Giovanni Manu was inserted late in the first half on the left side and was serviceable, but some consistency remains to be desired.

Of note, Dan Skipper did leave the stadium in a walking boot and reportedly is dealing with a low-ankle sprain. If he's forced to miss time, there could be first-team reps available for either Manu or Jamarco Jones if Taylor Decker isn't ready to return for practice.

Defensive line: D

The Lions' run defense was somewhat knocked around, as the likes of Kimani Vidal, Nyheim Miller-Hines and Hassan Haskins were able to create chunk plays.

The zone-read with quarterback Trey Lance gave Detroit some fits, such as in the second quarter when Vidal had a big run to the left when Mitchell Agude was flat-footed in the backfield. Chargers' first-round pick Omarion Hampton also made an early impact with an eight-yard run on his first touch.

Rookie Ahmed Hassanein narrowly missed a sack in the first half, and had some other opportunities. It's clear his motor will be an asset, but there's still some room for him to develop before he can be counted on to contribute in the regular season.

Linebackers: C

Grant Stuard had the Lions' only sack, and there were some bright spots within what is one of the deepest position groups on Detroit's roster. Ezekiel Turner paced the group with seven combined tackles, while Anthony Pittman had six including two tackles for loss.

Perhaps Detroit's best play of the night was Pittman blowing up a third-quarter screen pass, shooting through untouched to level the running back.

Trevor Nowaske added five combined tackles, but drew an early penalty. The Lions have plenty of options at this position, and having this group behind a solid trio should do wonders for the team's confidence in their depth.

Secondary: D+

Detroit's secondary has the chance to be a major asset with the addition of D.J. Reed and two All-Pro caliber safeties. However, that was not the case on Thursday with those players on the sideline. Trey Lance diced up the defense, particularly when targeting KeAndre Lambert-Smith.

Lambert-Smith beat Ennis Rakestraw deep for a big gain in the first quarter, then beat DiCaprio Bootle for a touchdown in the second quarter. Rakestraw (illegal use of hands) and Bootle (pass interference) both drew penalty whistles.

Despite the issues, the Lions did have some players step up. Tyson Russell did a good job defending a fade in the end zone to force an incompletion, while Ian Kennelly suplexed a running back in the second half.

Special teams: F

The Lions made a pair of uncharacteristic gaffes on special teams that led directly to Chargers points. First, Grant Stuard fumbled the opening kickoff to set up a touchdown. Then, in the second half, Jakobie Keeney-James muffed a punt standing inside the Lions' 10-yard line.

Detroit also committed two penalties on kicks, one being when Jake Bates kicked the ball short of the landing zone and the other coming when Lovett was the first player to touch a punt after running out of bounds.

Special teams coordinator Dave Fipp will certainly have his share of frustrations with the uncharacteristic errors, but Lovett and Stuard do offer some intrigue as returners, as both players had nice returns throughout the night.

Coaching: D+

Working with a group of depth players is a challenge for the staff, but they were clearly out-schemed. In the first showcase for both coordinators, the defensive line struggled to get pressure while the offense couldn't get in a rhythm.

Additionally, the Lions had to burn timeouts at times offensively due to not being aligned correctly with the third-team offense. These procedural issues are unacceptable.

While the Lions are indeed starting camp early and have an extra preseason game to work out the issues, the Chargers were simply more ready than Detroit was on Thursday.

This article first appeared on Detroit Lions on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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