Although optimism was surprisingly high on Wednesday about quarterback Matthew Stafford starting this week against the Denver Broncos, there was some skepticism due to the fact that he didn't take reps with the No. 1 offense.
On Thursday, that skepticism disappeared. Stafford did take reps with the first-team offense today, according to Dave Birkett, and Stafford reportedly looked pretty good considering he just got hurt last Sunday.
Stafford officially is considered day-to-day, but he moved around effortlessly today and appears on track to play Sunday against the Denver Broncos.
We won't find out if Stafford fully practiced or not until the official injury report is released later today, but even if he was technically limited, it's a good sign that he got reps with the first-team offense. If the Lions were feeling like he wouldn't be ready to play, chances are Shaun Hill would have once again been practicing with the No. 1 offense instead of getting second-string reps.
As long as Stafford doesn't miss practice on Friday, it's starting to look like a good bet that he will play on Sunday. Obviously things could change before the Broncos game, but as of right now the situation looks promising.