Veteran cornerback D.J. Reed signed with the Detroit Lions in free agency this offseason for three main reasons: He wanted to play for head coach Dan Campbell, he knew his man cover skills were a perfect fit in Detroit's scheme, and he was excited about the talent he was joining in the Lions' secondary.
He was exposed to the latter for the first time on the field during last week's OTA practices, and the reality didn't disappoint the expectations.
"It's what I thought it was," Reed said of the Lions' secondary. "It's the reason why Kerby (Joseph) and Brian Branch — you could arguably say that they're the 1A safeties. You could argue that they are both the best safeties in the NFL right now.
"And when you see them work day in and day out, it makes sense. And even working with Amik (Robertson), you can see why he's the best nickel or one of the best nickels, just with the way he communicates, the way he approaches every day, and the way he works."