Detroit Lions training camp Day 9 recap: Don Carey shines, Matthew Mulligan takes Eric Ebron’s spot

The Detroit Lions are on their way to Pittsburgh for a few days of joint practice with the Steelers before their upcoming preseason game on Friday. But before the Lions left on Monday, they had one final training camp practice at Allen Park. The practice, along with every subsequent practice from here on out, was closed to the public. So here is a media roundup of what happened during Monday’s practice.

Injury updates

As reported earlier, Ebron was at practice without a cast or boot, but was described as having a slight limp. He did not participate in any part of practice today.

According to Tim Twentyman, WR TJ Jones, WR Andre Caldwell and OT Cornelius Lucas all sat out of Monday’s practice. Caldwell was asked after practice if Jones was suffering from a concussion, but he refused to respond. Caldwell and Lucas’ injuries are still unknown.

Additionally, Kyle Meinke noted that defensive end Deonte Gibson was also not participating in practice. Also, Ameer Abdullah continues to wear the red no-contact jersey.

Don Carey nabs two interceptions

Carey was taken off the PUP list just five days ago, and is already making his presence felt at training camp. Several beat writers took notice of Carey’s big day on Monday:

Detroit Free Press:

Carey had two interceptions, one during one-on-one drills and a second against Matthew Stafford in which he made a perfect read on the ball.

ESPN:

Don Carey made his first noticeable play of camp, intercepting a Stafford pass intended for Orson Charles. It was a really, really good read by Carey, who is in a tough battle for a roster spot as a depth safety.

The Detroit News:

The veteran defensive back, who missed the team’s first four training camp practice while on the non-football injury list, intercepted two passes during Monday’s practice, including one off starting quarterback Matthew Stafford.

“I was in position to make some plays today and I made them,” Carey said.

Carey, who also excels in special teams, is going to be in an intense battle with guys in the secondary like Tavon Wilson and Johnson Bademosi for a roster spot.

Bynes is back

Josh Bynes was presumed to be the primary backup at the linebacker position when it was announced that DeAndre Levy would start camp on the NFI list. However, for the first week, it was Jon Bostic who took over reps with the first team. For the past three practices, according to Kyle Meinke of MLive, Bynes has won back that spot on the depth chart and seems to have “pulled in the lead for that job.”

Watch out for Matthew Mulligan

With Ebron sitting out for the foreseeable future, many have been impressed with the performance of undrafted free agent Cole Wick. But Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press pointed out it was Matthew Mulligan who took first-team reps on Monday.

Even though Wick and Mulligan are competing at the same position, they both have very different roles. Mulligan is a veteran with most of his time in the league spent on the line and blocking. Wick, on the other hand, is a rookie pass-catcher. With Ebron gone, you may expect the Lions to fill the void with a person of Wick’s skill set, but it appears the Lions are transitioning to a more blocking-heavy tight end while their pass catcher remains on the mend.

Alex Carter out, Darrin Walls in?

Carter’s struggles at camp continued on Monday. According to ESPN’s Michael Rothstein, Carter was routinely beaten by Jay Lee on Monday. Meanwhile, one of the men competing for his roster spot, Darrin Walls, had a great day. You may remember Walls from his interception on Saturday against Matthew Stafford:

Rothstein reported that Walls broke up passes from both Stafford and Dan Orlovsky on Monday. It’s still very early in camp, but Walls is certainly making an impression over Carter at this point in camp.