Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell was emphatic before his team took the field for its second preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons.
In its first showing, Detroit was sloppy and had five turnovers in its loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
Against an NFC foe, Detroit's popular head coach wanted his team to avoid turnovers and to hyper-focus on finding any way to land turnovers of its own.
"A few of the talking points that I had with the team (are) take care of the football, man. Ball security comes at a premium, and I want to know that we’ve improved that," Campbell said during his pregame interview with Lions flagship radio. "Quarterbacks, take care of the football, man, be smart, smart decisions. I don’t want you to be tense and tight, cut it loose, but be smart with it.
"And then defensively, we need at least two takeaways, and I want to see guys going after the football," Campbell continued. "We need to have balls on the ground, we need to get them out, and I want to know who those guys are, and who are the guys who have learned from their errors? I don't want to hear about recurring mental errors, 'Oh, they made the same mistakes twice.' That's doing you no good, we've learned something about you in a bad way."
Here are several takeaways from the Lions' second preseason game against the Falcons.
Defensive back Morice Norris left the game, and was taken to Grady Memorial Trauma Center via ambulance in the fourth quarter after coming into contact with running back Nathan Carter.
Subsequently, the decision was made to suspend the game with 6:19 remaining on the game clock. The Falcons snapped the ball to start the clock, but did not run a play. Players on both teams joined together for a moment of prayer as the clock wound down.
After the game, the Lions shared that Norris was in stable condition with feeling and movement in all his extremities. He will remain in Atlanta's Grady Memorial Hospital overnight.
Detroit's defense was able to force a turnover on downs on the Falcons' opening offensive possession of the game. Atlanta made the decision to go for it on fourth down, but the Easton Stick toss to wideout David Sills sailed.
Hooker, Detroit's third-year quarterback, should have had a flag thrown against the Falcons for grabbing his face mask. However, the end result of the third-down play was a turnover, with Hooker coughing up the football. Josh Woods recovered the fumble for Atlanta.
On Detroit's second offensive possession, wide receiver Jackson Meeks, who is competing with Dominic Lovett for a spot on the roster, should have secured a reception to extend the drive. But, the drive was ended following the incompletion.
Early in the second quarter, Detroit was knocking on the door in the red zone. Unfortunately, Hooker was standing in the pocket when he was hit by Arnold Ebiketie. Defensive tackle Ta'Quon Graham recovered the loose football for Atlanta.
Hooker was eventually replaced by Kyle Allen with approximately 5:00 remaining in the second quarter. He finished seven-of-10 for 38 yards with a pair of fumbles.
Tyleik Williams, Tate Ratledge and Isaac TeSlaa, Detroit's top three draft selections, appear to be ready to contribute in their first season in the NFL.
Detroit's coaching staff made the decision to play Williams and Ratledge against the Falcons to get them their first game action, since they sat against the Chargers.
Ratledge was able to showcase his size, speed and footwork. Most notably, he consistently opened up running lanes for Craig Reynolds Friday night.
TeSlaa capped off a five-play, 80-yard scoring drive with a touchdown reception of 11 yards. The touchdown was thrown by Allen, who had come in to replace an ineffective and turnover-prone Hooker.
Mr. Isaac TeSlaa!
Day 1 Starter pic.twitter.com/5OUpNWP7pb
— DetroitSportsPodcast (@DetroitPodcast) August 9, 2025
The Lions' defense did a solid job of stifling the Falcons' offense. Though third-string quarterback Easton Stick had an early 15-yard connection with Sills, the Lions were ultimately able to force a turnover on downs on their first possession. Al-Quadin Muhammad had a sack, and Zach Cunningham blew up a third-and-short run.
Detroit was able to keep the Falcons quiet for most of the half, with multiple veterans playing big roles. Grant Stuard forced an incompletion by going step-for-step with a running back on a wheel route, while Rock Ya-Sin had multiple impressive open-field tackles.
Ya-Sin forced a punt with a big hit on Dylan Drummond, and finished with three solo tackles.
The Falcons were able to generate some late momentum with a touchdown drive to end the half. On a fade route, Stick hit Chris Blair, who held onto the ball through a pass-interference penalty on Erick Hallett.
Heading into his second NFL season, Detroit's talented kicker has firmly cemented his position as Detroit's starter.
On Detroit's first offensive possession of the second half, Allen was able to find Ronnie Bell for a gain of 14 yards, and running back Jacob Saylors had a couple of carries.
A roughing-the-passer penalty aided Detroit, and moved the football to the Falcons' 42-yard line.
After the drive stalled, Bates drilled a 57-yard kick that tied the game at 10. Based on where the football landed, the kick likely would have been good from 10 yards further out.
Leg Strength For Jake Bates 🤙🏼🤙🏼 pic.twitter.com/ldwmfyaAAW
— DetroitSportsPodcast (@DetroitPodcast) August 9, 2025
1.) The Lions' starting offensive line featured Giovanni Manu at left tackle, Kayode Awosika at left guard, Trystan Colon at center, Ratledge at right guard and Mason Miller at right tackle. Late in the first half, the Lions swapped the interior with Netane Muti and Colby Sorsdal taking over at guard and Kingsley Eguakun at center. Colon left the game with an apparent injury.
2.) Running back Sione Vaki is still dealing with a hamstring injury, and did not play against the Falcons.
3.) Za'Darius Smith posted on social media support for wideout Jackson Meeks. He shared, "Turn up nephew."
4.) Saylors was the primary running back on the Lions' third-quarter scoring drive. He showcased good balance on his carries, powering through defenders with his shoulder and fighting for extra yardage. He converted a fourth-and-3 inside the 10-yard line with a 4-yard run to set up Allen's touchdown to Meeks.