DETROIT -- The Detroit Lions finished the preseason with a 26-7 dud of a drubbing against the Houston Texans in front of the home crowd.
Detroit’s offense was blanked across the final three quarters, with quarterback Hendon Hooker and the offense struggling to get anything done. It’s a busy week ahead for the Lions, with their initial 53-man roster due by 4 p.m. Tuesday.
The next time the Lions take the field will be in two weeks against the Green Bay Packers in the season opener from Lambeau Field.
### **Here are some notable quotes from the Lions and Texans players and coaches on Saturday:**
**Lions coach Dan Campbell, on how he feels about the team heading into the season:** “Thank God it’s here - almost. It’s time. It’s time to get ready for the season and this opener -- get ready to go to Lambeau (Field). I love where our team is at. There again, we just finished basically six weeks, five weeks of true work on the grass, and we’ve gotten better and better every week on both sides of the ball. I feel like we’ve really progressed. We’ve gotten two different looks from other teams, too, with Miami and Houston this week, and I just think we’ve gotten a variety of work. I think we’ve tested each other, I think we’ve grown from it, and I think we are going to be ready to go. I’m fired up right now. We’re going to be good.”
**Campbell, on if there were a lack of standouts from the preseason finale:** “Yeah, well, if it is, it would have to be somebody who’s doing dirty work. That you’re not going to just – won’t necessarily pop, you’re going to have to go watch the tape because I don’t disagree with – I don’t feel like anything else really was very glaring in a positive manner if you will ... “I did think (Trevor Nowaske) Now played at a high level today. You could see the physical, but I thought, man, he was in it mentally – like he was pretty locked in. I thought he – which look, some of that is raw for him playing the stack-backer, and he was running the MIKE, middle linebacker – making the calls. And I just thought he played a pretty cerebral game too, which is good to see, which means he’s growing and developing. And then certainly (Strickland) Strick, he’s a ball-hawk. He finds the ball and he did that again, man – two big plays there in the red zone were good to see.”
**Nowaske, on his play and the challenge of playing MIKE:** “I think it’s great. Like you said, I think for my development and, obviously, at the SAM linebacker you have to have some duties off the ball. So, I think it’s really important to get those reps, too. It just makes that transition that much easier. I’m happy I’m getting those reps and thankful they’re giving me the opportunity. I feel like today, I did well, and we’ll just go from there.”
**Lions QB Hendon Hooker, on if it was frustrating to perform well in practice but then struggle with turnovers during games: "**Of course. Of course, I was frustrated seeing that. That’s not my regular character, regardless of where we are—practice or games. So just trying to make those plays, trying to fit things in tight windows, to force the ball. Of course, it’s a letdown, especially knowing what I can do."
**Lions WR Isaac TeSlaa, on what it means to have the trust of his teammates and coaches:** “That’s my ultimate goal. Obviously as a rookie, still trying to find my role on this team. Just to be able to build that trust from the coaching staff and the offense as a whole, the play-callers, and then ultimately my teammates I think is a super big thing for me as a rookie.”
**TeSlaa, on why he’s been so successful in the preseason and camp:** “Just the way I play the game, I think that’s the big reason why they brought me into Detroit. It’s just the way I go about my business every single day. Whether it’s catching the ball, what I do in the run game, I think I just bring physicality and toughness.”
**Texans coach DeMeco Ryans, on what he was looking for against the Lions:** “The main thing in this this last preseason game, just want to see guys and I ask them go out play with elite energy play with elite execution that’s all. You don’t worry about things you can’t control when it comes to the roster and making the team, just go out and play ball, play as hard as you can possibly play. The decisions to make the roster, it doesn’t happen just on this one game. We know our guys, we’ve been watching these guys since offseason training, so we know the type of guys we have.”
**Texans WR Quintez Cephus, on scoring a TD against his former team:** “It felt good, man. I practice hard, every opportunity I get, and it’s great to get out here and do it on this stage in the game, especially in Detroit. It felt amazing to get in the end zone. It’s been a while, so just overly grateful.”
**Texans OL LaDarius Henderson (Ex-Michigan football player) on what he saw from his team against the Lions:** “(I saw) what we’ve been preaching all week, just togetherness and being on the same page, communicating and executing. A lot of times, whoever plays the cleanest game wins these preseason games. So that’s what we were just focusing on today is being together with our steps and with our calls and everything.”
**Lions WR Jackson Meeks ,on what he’s learned about himself as a person and player based on training camp and preseason:** “Nothing that I didn’t already know. It’s just now I’m able to go out there and play without thinking. That’s what I would say helped me the most this camp—learning the playbook more and just going out there and playing fast."
**Campbell, on how tough these next 72 hours of cuts are:** “To start out, a number of guys – just respect all the work they put in since spring, and some guys even longer potentially, that have been here with us. I just appreciate everything that they’ve given and that they’ve brought to the team, but also themselves. And I told those guys they should be proud of themselves, and this will shake out in the next 72 hours. No matter what happens, they should be proud of themselves and just keep pushing forward. That’s what this is, it’s hard. It’s hard this time of year. And you hate it for some of these guys, because of what they do, they lay it on the line."
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