With training camp officially getting started Thursday, the Lions were beginning to run out of time to sign their rookies.  Third-round pick Cliff Avril already signed earlier this month, but he was the only Lions rookie to do so; that is, until today.  Six other Lions rookies were signed to contracts today, meaning all but two have officially joined the team.  The six rookies that signed today are listed below.

Third-rounders: HB Kevin Smith (Central Florida), DT Andre Fluellen (Florida State)
Fifth-rounders: WR Kenneth Moore (Wake Forest), FB Jerome Felton (Furman)
Seventh-rounders: DT Landon Cohen (Ohio), LB Caleb Campbell (Army)

Including Avril, seven of the Lions' nine draft picks now have contracts.  That leaves offensive tackle Gosder Cherilus and linebacker Jordon Dizon as the only Lions rookies without deals.  I hope talks progress over night and into tomorrow as it's important to get every single rookie signed by the time training camp starts.  That way nobody has to miss any practice, which is especially vital for Cherilus and Dizon as they will contend for starting jobs.  Even one day missed is big as every second on the field counts.

Pride of Detroit will have the latest on any signings that happen, so keep checking back to see if Cherilus and Dizon get a deal done.

• More details on Pride of Detroit's fantasy football league should be out shortly.  As of right now, I believe 9 people (including myself) have said they're interested in participating.  That leaves 3 spots open, so if you still want in, just leave a comment or send me an e-mail at SYBlogs@yahoo.com.
• Matt Millen was on WJR last night, and Tom Kowalski recapped the interview.  Nothing Millen said was earth-shattering, but he did shed some light on the Lions' QB situation and briefly discussed Brett Favre before realizing he better not say too much as he doesn't want to venture into tampering territory.
• Mike O'Hara wrote a great article on Lions seventh-round draft pick Caleb Campbell.
• ESPN released its training camp power rankings, and the Lions came in at 29th, only ahead of the Chiefs, Dolphins, and Falcons.  It's hard to disagree with that assessment given the Lions are expected to have a below average season, so ESPN seems accurate in that part of their rankings.

Linebacker Caleb Campbell is the most talked about Lions rookie despite being a seventh-round draft pick.  That's the case because he was the first player from Army to be drafted in 11 years, and because he is actually going to have a shot at playing in the NFL thanks to a new policy.

As long as Campbell is on an NFL team, he is allowed to serve the United States as an Army recruiter.  Should he be cut, though, he would likely be deployed soon after if he couldn't find another team.  That is what the Army's policy was understood to be all this time, but now things may be up in the air as the policy is under review.

According to a memorandum from the Under Secretary of Defense last August, academy graduates can request early release from their active duty service obligations (ADSO) only after having served a minimum of 24 months of those obligations.

The Army's interpretation is that Campbell could serve those 24 months as a Detroit-area recruiter if he makes the Lions and remains on their roster those two seasons.

The interpretation by the Air Force and Navy is that their graduates must fulfill that two-year military commitment first before pursuing an early release. The Department of Defense informed the Army in late April, after the draft, that it must review its policy to make sure it's in compliance.

"That's where the rub is," said Army spokesperson Lt. Col. Anne Edgecomb. "What is 24 months of active service?"

Should something happen that causes Campbell to serve his two years of active service as something more than a recruiter, this really could become a sticky situation.  Not only would there be bad PR for the Army as Campbell, along with all of us, were under the impression that he could pursue a career in the NFL, but it would basically make one of the Lions' draft picks non-existent, at least until his two years of service are over.

Of course, all of this talk about what the future of the policy is may turn out to be all for naught should Campbell be cut, but there is a chance he will make the team.  It isn't a great chance, but he certainly has a shot.  For something to happen that could make that shot not matter at all would just be a shame.

• The city of Detroit is a finalist for ESPN's TitleTown USA.  The whole thing is a filler segment on SportsCenter since there aren't as many highlights to show with baseball being the only major sport going on, but it does give credence to the type of sports city Detroit is.  Of course, the Motor City is a finalist in spite of the Lions, but thankfully we do have the Red Wings, Tigers (six in a row!), and Pistons to make us feel better.  Ann Arbor is also a finalist.
  
• With Cedric Benson recently being released from the Bears, ex-Lion Kevin Jones is putting his name out there as a possible replacement in Chicago.  Jones hasn't signed with a team yet since leaving the Lions in March, and you can bet Chicago will be looking for some added depth at the running back position.  It'll take time to see if things work out for the Bears, but Jones definitely sounds like he would want to play there. 
  
  I don't blame him one bit.  After all, he could get revenge on the Lions twice a season since he would continue to play in the NFC North.  And former Lions always seem to do well when making return trips to Detroit.  Just ask Artose Pinner or Joey Harrington.  Could Jones be the next one to do that to the Lions?  I wouldn't be very surprised.
• Roy Williams doesn't want to be included in the conversation of players complaining about their contracts or team situations.  It hasn't been uncommon for players, especially receivers, to call for a trade (I'm looking at you, Ocho Cinco) or complain about their contract (hola, Plaxico Burress) lately, but Williams is saying all the right things.  Mind you, what he is saying may not be sincere, but hey, I'll take that over someone like Ocho Cinco any day.
• Calvin Johnson missed some practices recently as he was in his hometown of Atlanta for a heart surgery his father had.
• On a lighter note, Johnson scored a 243 in the Lions' annual bowling tournament, the highest of any game during the tourney.
• Rookie defensive tackle Landon Cohen finally was able to practice now that he is done with college.
• Former Lion Shaun Rogers is looking impressive at nose tackle for the Browns.
• Rod Marinelli invited 10 southeastern Michigan high schools to Allen Park to take in a day with the Lions.
• Lomas Brown worked with and will continue to work with rookie right tackle Gosder Cherilus.  Brown was honest in his current assessment of Cherilus, saying, "I don't think he's very far."  Obviously it takes time to learn the ropes of the NFL, but I think Cherilus will look better once he is able to hit some people.
• Compared to previous years, this team appears to have a more confident atmosphere surrounding them with more experienced players on defense and more control on offense.
• Rookie linebacker Jordon Dizon feels the Lions' defensive system is built for someone like him.
• Unlike Army rookie Caleb Campbell, a Navy pitcher just drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals will not get a chance to pursue his professional sports career in the near future.

• ESPN's John Clayton took a look at what teams would be fine and what teams would struggle in the event of an uncapped year in 2010.  That will only happen if a new CBA isn't agreed to by then, but it is a realistic possibility.  According to Clayton, the Lions would be one of five teams that would have "concerns" should an uncapped year become a reality.
  

  Teams with older starting quarterbacks could be in trouble in the next couple of years because no top quarterback will hit the free-agent market. Jon Kitna will be 37 and unsigned in 2010 and the Lions have done very little to find their long-term starter. Drew Stanton is the best hope for the future.

  Even if there isn't an uncapped year Detroit will be in trouble if they don't start planning ahead.  Nobody knows how much longer Kitna will be a starter, and even beyond that, nobody knows how much longer he should be a starter.  At the same time, Drew Stanton has never taken a snap in this league before, leaving a countless number of question marks around him.  My opinion on Stanton has been made many times before, and it is that he isn't an NFL-caliber starting QB.  That leaves the Lions without a starter, and if they want to even think about being decent in the coming years, some planning will have to go on.
  
  Getting back to Clayton's article really quickly, he goes on to talk about how many of the Lions' current starters will have their contracts expire in the near future.  It is scary to think about, but Detroit could have trouble finding a decent starting lineup if they lost all of the players mentioned.
• According to the Detroit Free Press, Roy Williams, Ernie Sims, George Foster, Artose Pinner, and Tatum Bell were not at a voluntary OTA last Thursday.  Why?  I have no idea.  Rod Marinelli said "he knew where everyone was," so I'm not too concerned.
• Rookie Army linebacker Caleb Campbell has been greatly (and in my opinion unfairly) criticized for his decision to try and make it in the NFL.
• Running back Kevin Smith, a rookie out of Central Florida, is already impressing Rod Marinelli.  He seems to have a great attitude and solid work ethic, which are two things Marinelli values very much.  I believe he will be the starter fairly early on next season as he seems to have so much more potential than Tatum Bell or any other RB on the Lions roster.
• Madden 09 seems to agree with that assessment of the Lions running back situation as Smith is rated a 79 and Bell is only a 78.  That is fairly accurate I guess.  What's not, though, is Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson being rated a 92. On top of that, Shaun McDonald got an 87 and Brian Calhoun a 95 as the third-down running back.  The defense isn't too bad as Ernie Sims got a 94.  Then again, they gave Chuck Darby an 83, weakening the credibility of the ratings even more.
• MLive's Philip Zaroo interviewed former Lion Lomas Brown.
• Former Lions bust Charles Rogers was supposed to make an attempt at resurrecting his football career in the CFL, but as of right now he still is unemployed.  He verbally agreed to a contract with the team in Montreal a few weeks back, making most assume he was getting ready to head north of the border.  For some reason, though, in true Charles Rogers form, he hasn't sent the contract back yet and his representatives haven't returned phone calls from the team.  That sounds about right for someone like Rogers.
• Speaking of former Lions busts, Mike Williams finally may be getting serious about losing weight.  Maybe he just needed a change of scenery.  And no, his stint in Oakland doesn't count.

• Though he is still learning, quarterback Drew Stanton showed some signs that he was reverting back to his old habits during yesterday's minicamp practice.
• Ernie Sims had to have offseason surgery to repair an injured shoulder.  He didn't divulge too many details, but did say that he played with it "probably about half the season."
• Mike O'Hara posted some great notes on the practice in his Lions' blog.
• Caleb Campbell finished exams at Army on Tuesday and then got on the football field for practice on Wednesday.
• Slot receivers Shaun McDonald and Mike Furrey both had breakout seasons when playing in the Mike Martz offense these last two seasons.  Since the Martz offense uses slot receivers so much, it should come as no surprise that both did so well.  Now that the Lions are shifting their focus to running the ball more, though, one has to wonder what happens to guys like McDonald and Furrey.  Although there were trade rumors involving McDonald possibly being shipped to San Francisco to join Martz, nothing ever really materialized.
  
  When asked about his role in the new offense, McDonald did say that he doesn't expect to be used as much anymore.  Colletto basically said the same thing as he mentioned that their numbers likely will diminish in 2008.
• IGN went hands-on with Madden 09, and I have to say, this year's game looks like it is going to be amazing.  The look inside the stadium is greatly improved, there are new features and a better atmosphere, and there are actually good announcers this year.  Although the game doesn't hit stores until mid-August, the anticipation already is building.

• Detroit will open a three-day long mandatory minicamp tomorrow, giving rookies their first shot at lining up against the veterans, and Kevin Smith is excited.
• Speaking of that minicamp, Army linebacker Caleb Campbell will not miss it as he was able to reschedule his final exams to get them done early.  It was originally thought that he would be busy with school, but he will be in Allen Park later tomorrow.  Ohio defensive tackle Landon Cohen, on the other hand, will be absent as he is finishing up school.
• The Lions are ranked 29th in ESPN's first power rankings for the 2008 season.
• An undrafted free agent from East Carolina got into a fight with third-round pick Cliff Avril during the rookie minicamp two weekends ago.
  
• Tatum Bell is coming into the offseason program weighing 213 pounds.
• Barry Sanders unsurprisingly made a list of the top five athletes to retire early.
  
• Mike Williams recently talked about how the year away from football before joining the Lions hurt his career so much.  You think Matt Millen would have seen that before wasting a first-round pick on him.
• The Patriots hosted running back Kevin Jones for a visit.  Jones still hasn't signed with a team since being released by the Lions in March.
• The Texans recently put together a video and an article about the zone blocking scheme.  What does this have to do with the Lions?  Well, Detroit is switching to a zone blocking scheme this season, so it may be good to read up and learn about the philosophy.