September 2, 2026
Opening Statement: (Holmes) “First off, I want to thank all the players for all of their efforts. Really all – it’s been over 90, obviously, just because of all the guys that we brought in and out, but want to thank them for all their efforts, not just training camp, but the past, let’s say five or six months that they’ve been preparing to get ready for this moment. So, really appreciate their efforts and sacrifice, especially for this camp. Felt like the competition was pretty fierce and guys that put in all that time and effort to get ready for this moment, especially ones that we unfortunately couldn’t keep, it’s hard. Obviously, I thought (Lions Head Coach) Dan (Campbell) did a great job of managing the camp. Even going all the way back to right after the Draft, the phases of the offseason program, OTAs, just how everything kind of married up very nicely with the management of everything, getting the necessary work in, getting the guys prepared. So, he’s always done a great job about that. And then really the whole coaching staff. You can bring the competition in, but to have those guys play fast, to compete hard, those guys getting pushed, I mean, it’s golden evaluation opportunities to look at those guys. So, everybody did a great job. Personnel department’s big time for us around this time of the year. So, a lot of hard work goes into this process of monitoring the entire League around this time. And really, I mean, so many people to name to have a successful training camp. So, our performance staff, our trainers, operations, grounds crew, everybody, almost really too many names, but it’s all hands-on deck.”
On if they feel like they fell short in the investigation regarding former Lions CB Terrion Arnold: (Holmes) “Are you asking about the decision or the current depth?”
On former Lions CB Terrion Arnold and the decision to not get more insurance at the position: (Holmes) “Oh yeah. I mean, look, the whole situation obviously was unfortunate. Look, kid made a mistake. The more information that we got throughout the process, that was the result of us doing what the best and right thing was for the club, which was to move on and move forward. We appreciate everything that he did, but I think with respect to the present right now, to focus on the guys that we have here, and we like the guys that we have right now in that room. So, I hope that answers the question.”
On if the team feels like they did enough to add to the room if former Lions CB Terrion Arnold wasn’t going to be on the roster anymore: (Holmes) “No, that didn’t go into the decision of what we did this past offseason. Again, like I said, we like the guys that we have in this room.”
(Agnew Jr.) “A little bit more respect for what those guys have done and what they can do in the National Football League, those guys that played a lot of football. And so, we feel good about those guys.”
On the team having only four wide receivers on the roster: (Holmes) “Four is obviously a little bit on the lighter side. That’s just where we’re at right now today, currently. But I do like the different flavors in that room. Obviously, we all know (Lions WR Amon-Ra) St. Brown and (Lions WR Jameson Williams) Jamo and (Lions WR Isaac) TeSlaa. I know he dropped a couple of balls in a preseason game, but I thought he had a good camp too. Just the little things that he does in the run game, which those aren’t little things actually, those are really big things that he does in the run game. And I thought that he improved with his route running, his releases, all those things. So, was pleased with his camp as well. But I thought (Lions WR) Tom Kennedy, like you mentioned, that’s why he’s still part of our 69 currently right now. He was able to add some special teams to his repertoire. He kind of did a little bit of that last year, but we all know the versatility he has. And then I thought (Lions WR) Tay Martin did a really good job in terms of a guy that – and credit our personnel staff in terms of scouting the UFL, making sure all those guys are looked at. There’s mechanics of even bringing those guys in and when you can even sign those guys in terms of, in relation to, the completion of their season. So, I give a lot of credit to those guys in terms of being patient, sticking to the process and finding a guy like him to bring in. But he made it relatively easy throughout camp in terms of his contributions in the run game, his contributions on special teams, and he showed the ability to win one-on-ones. And so, when you’re doing all those components at that position, especially when you’re looking at towards the back end, you can fit in right here.”
On the depth of the secondary, Lions CB Ennis Rakestraw Jr. and the nickel position: (Holmes) “Obviously we like the depth that we have behind, like you said, (Lions CB) Rock (Ya-Sin) and (Lions CB) D.J. (Reed). Look, Rock played really good football for us last year, he’s had a really good camp this year. And then Ennis, I’m just glad that his health has been better and he’s had a chance to go out there and compete and he’s gotten better throughout the camp. He has a lot of ability, he’s got a lot of stuff in his body where he can play sticky. I thought his run game stuff improved, he showed that throughout the preseason as well. And I think it was him missing last year, he was able to really get his body in a lot better shape in terms of his strength development and a little bit of weight added to him. So, I think it actually helped as much as you look at, he missed all that time. So, we liked those guys. We liked being able to bring (Lions CB) Roger McCreary back. He’s played a lot of football both inside and a little bit outside. I would actually argue that some of the stuff that he did on the outside was – what he did last year on the outside may have been a little bit more appealing than what he did inside at his first stop. So really like him, and then us being able to draft (Lions CB) Keith Abney II, he’s been a quick study in terms of his instincts, his toughness, his ability to do a lot of it. He’s a football player. So, when you really think about – you look at the totality of the group, you still got (Lions CB Khalil Dorsey) Dorse that’s been, I think he’s one of the better gunners in the League. And I think overall, I think we have a good group there.”
On if the team investigated former Lions CB Terrion Arnold’s story or took him at his word: (Holmes) “No, we had a lot of information that was coming in that we were privy to and then we just made sure that we did not ignore any of the information, and we looked at it and then we came to the decision to move on and move forward after we had enough information.”
On if the team thought that former Lions CB Terrion Arnold getting arrested was a possibility: (Holmes) “That he was going to get arrested?”
On the team not bringing in additional insurance in regards to former Lions CB Terrion Arnold’s legal situation: (Holmes) “Are you saying to not get another young starting outside corner that was on another team? Is that what you’re asking?”
On if the team feels they could’ve done more in retrospect considering that former Lions CB Terrion Arnold is no longer on the team: (Holmes) “I’ve answered multiple times. We like the guys that we have in the room right now. So, are you saying because we didn’t get another young, outside starting corner from another team or because we didn’t pick one in the first round? Is that what you’re asking?”
On if he feels the team should’ve done more to acquire another cornerback in relation to the legal situation involving former Lions CB Terrion Arnold: (Holmes) “We did bring players in, we did draft a corner, we did bring a corner in free agency, we did re-sign a corner. So, that’s why I’m asking you, because you’re saying that we didn’t do anything.”
On the team not acquiring another outside cornerback to replace former Lions CB Terrion Arnold: (Holmes) “That’s what I asked you. I was like – are you saying we didn’t do anything because we didn’t do that – what you just said?”
On if he feels like the team did enough at the outside cornerback position following the release of former Lions CB Terrion Arnold: (Holmes) “We like the guys we have, we like what we’ve done, and we feel good about what’s in the room right now.”
On the injury timeline of Lions RB Isiah Pacheco: (Holmes) “Well, Pacheco, look, he’s doing everything that he can to get back. We’re still excited about him to get back. We didn’t use one of those spots before cutdowns, but he’s on there now.”
On a timetable for Lions RB Isiah Pacheco’s return: (Holmes) “Look, I don’t want to put a timetable on it right now. I’ll just say that, look, he’s steadily feeling better and again, he’s doing everything that he can to get back, and we’re excited to get him back when he’s healthy.”
On if Lions RB Isiah Pacheco will be back during this season: (Holmes) “That’s the hope.”
On why Lions RB Isiah Pacheco was not put on IR immediately: (Holmes) “With the information that we had, that’s why we decided to do it when we did it.”
On the team’s approach to acquiring players who have an injury history: (Holmes) “Look, football’s a physical game and injuries occur and so injuries are, yeah, some guys have had them in the past, some have not. You can sign a player that’s never really missed much time, and something can happen at any point. So, you just understand the risk whenever you make an acquisition of any player and know that anything can happen at any time. That’s our job up here to make sure that we have succession plans and different points where you can pivot in place in case that happens.”
On if the team considers injury history when deciding whether or not to sign a player: (Holmes) “Yeah.”
On what they know about the roster today that they didn’t know about in mid-July: (Agnew Jr.) “I won’t say it’s something I didn’t know, but I think this is one of the most competitive rosters we’ve had. I think the competition is still going on. Guys are still competing. So, that’s the one thing I would say that – I wouldn’t say I didn’t know, but different than in the past, that all the position battles and the competition and some of it is still going on as the year goes on.”
On their thoughts on how the defensive line looked during the preseason: (Agnew Jr.) “Yeah, I would say it’s a strong point of the defense. (Lions DL) Alim (McNeill), he’s played as good as anybody in the League right now and (Lions EDGE Aidan Hutchinson) Hutch is the real deal off the edge and (Lions DL) Tyleik’s (Williams) growing into a heck of a football player. (Lions EDGE) D.J. Wonnum is bringing that veteran presence along with (Lions EDGE) Derrick Moore, the young kid we drafted for Michigan. I think that group is going to be very vital for us this year, and I think they’re going to put up a strong effort. I’m really, really, really excited about that group.”
On the acquisition of Lions EDGE Eric O’Neill and why it was important to keep on the roster: (Holmes) “I was going to just add on to what (Lions Assistant General Manager) Ray (Agnew, Jr.) was saying. There’s an emphasis to – we wanted to add more juice and more ability to get after the quarterback this past cycle. But, Eric O’Neill, look, there’s always – when you get into undrafted free agency, there’s always a handful of guys that you want to make sure you really, really get for various type of reasons. And Eric O’Neill was one of those guys. As much as the chaos was going around with – because undrafted free agency is always a little bit of uncontrolled chaos to a degree – but I never forget (Director of College Scouting) Brian Hudspeth was on the phone with him and as much chaos is going on, I got my ear right next to Hudspeth because I knew he was on the phone with him like, ‘Let’s make sure we get this done.’ He’s a very high-motor player, he’s very instinctive. He’s a better athlete than his numbers may indicate and he gets the most out of himself. He’s just one of those guys that we knew that he was going to fit right in here in terms of what we’re about from a culture standpoint. And he took advantage of his opportunities and it worked out well for him.”
On releasing former Lions WR Greg Dortch: (Holmes) “Look, the whole time we wanted to add as much competition as possible this whole offseason. And look, when you add as much competition as possible, I thought it was fierce competition. It adds more discomfort, but it also entails harder decisions. And so, that’s really all it was, is just he was part of that competition and unfortunately it didn’t work out. So, that’s why we made the move we made.”
On the confidence level they have in Lions QB Jared Goff this season with the changes in the offensive line and offensive coordinator: (Agnew Jr.) “(Lions QB Jared Goff) JG, look, we’ve known JG since he was a kid. The one thing that’s not known about that guy, I think it’s a little underrated for him, he’s extremely tough, man. He’s a tough, resilient guy. I expect nothing but good things from Jared this year. I mean, I got nothing but good things to say about Jared.”
(Holmes) “When Jared first got here, we knew that he still had upside to him and knowing his wiring and knowing how much it means to him and how important it is, I think that combination is just, it’s been amazing that the growth is still going. I feel like he gets better every year still at this point in his career. But just his comfort, we have some familiar weapons around him. But that was one of the big things about adding (Lions Offensive Coordinator) Drew Petzing is just making sure that they were going to vibe, and it’s been a seamless transition. And I’m really, really excited about not only what Petzing is going to bring, but Jared with Petzing. I think it’s going to be big for us.”
On what strategy goes into building a roster that people may not know: (Agnew Jr.) “Well, without going into too many details, I would say the intangible part is really, we’ve got to be tough, smart. We like guys that are gritty, guys that like football, that love football. We don’t want guys that like what football does for them. We want guys that love ball and love to play football. So, I think that’s the main ingredient, the intangibles.”
(Holmes) “Yeah, I would say just to piggyback on what (Lions Assistant General Manager) Ray (Agnew, Jr.) said, we will sacrifice or compromise on talent for those intangible qualities. There might be a guy that has a little bit more speed or length or talent, but if he doesn’t meet the standards from what we call football character and intangible quality standpoint, then we know it’s going to be a hard fit here.”
On if it is difficult to detach from a player if they do not have football character: (Holmes) “No, I think they’re easy decisions. When a guy doesn’t have those things, he doesn’t have those things even if he has a baseline of talent. If the guy doesn’t fit, he doesn’t fit. And we’ve always been aligned on that since day one. And like I said, it actually makes the decision a little bit easier.”
On the comfortability with the offensive line, particularly at left guard, entering the season: (Holmes) “Yeah, it’s a good question. Look, we’re really excited about that group. Obviously, we’ve got a lot younger and a lot of guys had a lot of opportunities to grow that we were already excited for. So, starting with (Lions T) Blake (Miller), he’s gotten better and better and better every single day, which is kind of what we expected. So, like where he’s at, and obviously we all know that (Lions OL) Christian Mahogany has starter-level ability, he’s shown that. But obviously we wanted to increase the competition there. I know (Lions OL Ben) Bartch hasn’t been out there as much, but when he was out there, he was good. He performed well, he just wasn’t able to be out there as much. But, I would say last week with the practices, the scrimmage and that preseason game, he earned his spot. And look, we still had guys like (Lions OL Juice) Scruggs that were going to be in that spot. It’s just the unfortunate injury that (Lions C) Cade (Mays) had that kind of forced Scruggs into that – he used to kind of be a guard-center, and kind of center only now. So, that was kind of one piece of the competition, but it was good to finally see (Lions OL) Miles Frazier out there. I mean, he’s not a rookie, but he just didn’t have a whole lot last year. So, this is kind of his first year really having an offseason, having a whole training camp. And he was able to show some things, not just at guard, but some versatility at tackle as well.”
On the difficulty of Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs’ contract extension at the same time of Falcons RB Bijan Robinson Jr.’s extension and the possible extension of Lions TE Sam LaPorta and Lions DB Brian Branch: (Holmes) “So, starting with Gibbs, all of them are unique, especially when it gets up to that magnitude from a financial standpoint. And it was just unique that both of those guys were kind of happening at the same time. So, it was just more of kind of just being patient. We already knew what we wanted to do and you just had to see who was going to get done first and you got to kind of adjust and pivot off of that. But, we still wanted those other two, we still want to keep those guys around. Those plans hadn’t changed. There’s a couple of factors that we still got to sort through, but in terms of us wanting those guys around, absolutely. Hopefully we can get that done.”
On how much drafting Lions DL Skyler Gill-Howard was connected to playing more nickel: (Holmes) “Look, regardless of what our situation’s going to be in the secondary, we wanted to add more juice. We have guys that can play the run, obviously. And look, we say it all the time, you’ve got to earn the right to pass rush. So, you can’t just have all pass rushes from out the gate, but you can’t stop the run if you’re just getting gassed all day. You don’t need to throw the ball. But we’ve done a good job and (Lions Defensive Coordinator Kelvin Sheppard) Shepp’s done a great job just in terms from a run defense standpoint and his structures and how we deploy that personnel. We wanted to add more juice regardless. Guys like Gill-Howard, just mentioned him. Guys like Gill-Howard, that was one of the first things that you see when you watch his tape. My first thought was he could be an impact – what do you call it, like a DPR kind of sub rusher, but because of his innate violence that he’s wired with, then he’s actually been a little bit better in the run game than probably what we even anticipated. Not that it was bad in college, but NFL is a different story. And so, if you have 650 pounds coming on you, it’s hard. But, because of how he’s built and because he can bend and he has this innate violence and hand usage, he gives himself a chance. But, yeah, that was a guy that we always had appreciation for, affinity for. And also, I’ve got to give our analytics department a shout out too, because they were able to find some signal on guys like him and a couple other guys that we’re able to acquire.”
On when Lions S Kerby Joseph and Lions DB Brian Branch will return to play and how confident he is that they will be the same players: (Holmes) “Well, we still have confidence that they can come back. You just can’t really give an exact timeline. But, yeah, I mean, they’re both here, they’re rehabbing, they’re working hard, just can’t offer timeline. But yeah, the hopes is to have both of them back at some point.”
