Detroit Lions: Who on the Roster Bubble Helped and Hurt Themselves vs. Patriots

With roster cuts coming up, it is time to look at who helped and who hurt their chances of making the roster against the New England Patriots.

There are six players in particular that stood out to me, both in good and bad ways.  These players, should be considered bubble players, so they probably won't be cut with the first wave of players. 

Helped: Aaron Brown

The old adage is you can’t teach speed, and Aaron Brown has it.  The knock on him is that he still misses too many assignments and his vision isn’t great, but the dude is fast. 

One play in particular showed why he can't just be dismissed, New England safety James Ihedigbo had him lined up for minimal gain on a reception and Brown simply turned on the jets and avoided him all together.

Even though he is similar to Jahvid Best and might be more of a luxury, Brown makes for a nice safety net, especially since Best has not been able to stay healthy.

Hurt: Aaron Berry

With the cornerback competition heating up, Aaron Berry needed to make a play and he didn’t. 

He had a quiet two tackles and did nothing to show he deserves the roster spot he had before getting injured last year. He was partly responsible for the blown coverage that allowed Wes Welker to make a 44-yard touchdown reception.

Helped: Ricardo Silva

Ricardo Silva just seems to make plays.  The Lions are deep at safety and that is working against him, but when you intercept a Tom Brady pass, preseason or not, you turn heads. 

He already had an interception and a fumble recovery earlier in the preseason.

The other interesting thing is that he is one of the first reserves off the bench.  Earlier in training camp, I really thought this guy had no chance of making the roster, but now I am starting to question that.

He has at least earned a spot on the practice squad.

Programming note: I know that is not Silva in the picture, but I couldn't find a picture of him.

Hurt: Nate Hughes

When you are trying to make a roster, you simply can’t drop a touchdown pass and Hughes did that.  What made it even worse is that the ball went up in the air and was intercepted by Kyle Arrington. 

Being the cause of a red zone interception is a sure ticket out of town.

Helped: Derrick Williams

I wish I can get a read on Derrick Williams.  One week he looks like he doesn’t belong in the CFL, but the next makes a couple of nice receptions (one for a touchdown), but more importantly for him, then makes a very nice tackle on a kickoff return.

If he shows he can contribute on special teams, he might just fight his way back on the roster.

Hurt: Erik Coleman

I said Berry was partly responsible for the Welker touchdown because Coleman was the safety who blew the coverage on the play, but Coleman got caught looking in the backfield and should have been there to keep that play from becoming a Tom Brady highlight.

That being said, I would still consider it a long shot that Coleman gets cut.