Ennis Rakestraw: You don’t always get what you want

The defensive back for the Lions promises to put in more effort to improve his sophomore NFL season.

Kelvin Sheppard is promoted to defensive coordinator by the Detroit Lions.

In Week 2 of the 2024 NFL season, Ennis Rakestraw, a cornerback for the Detroit Lions, was getting ready to start as the team’s nickel cornerback.

Just before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers game, the second-round pick was injured during warmups. Rakestraw’s bad luck began with the injury, which kept him from making more than eight appearances in 2024.

In fact, I was going to get a chance to play. Rakestraw stated, “I was going to be the starting nickel that week, and that was going to be the Tampa Bay week.” “Many people were unaware of that. I suffered an injury during warm-ups, which was somewhat of a setback. I simply need to be available now. You can’t choose those circumstances, but it was a bit of a redshirt year. I never chose to be hurt; you don’t choose that for yourself. Because of the intensity they bring and the kind of team we had, I’ve always wanted to go out there with guys like Terrion and B.B. I’m going to use everything I’ve seen and learnt from them to improve myself in the offseason, become a better person, and be accessible.

His rookie season was not particularly impactful for the Lions because of the hamstring injury, which persisted for most of the season.

He suffered a sports hernia in college, which limited his work during minicamp. The injury bug returned after a solid training camp, which reduced his ability to contribute to the team.

“I was just trying to be competitive.” Being willing and competitive as a tackler and physical is how I got here. It just didn’t work out for me, but I believe I showed that enough that I was going to be able to show it Week 2,” Rakestraw said. “I simply remained in prayer. I handled every situation that came up by asking anyone in the building or the training room.

“I persisted, made an effort, and grinned every day. “It simply didn’t work out for me,” Rakestraw added. Not everything in life turns out the way you want it to. It’s the next step, not about that anymore. The game is over because we already lost. Let’s change our bodies, our habits, and our availability now.

pic.twitter.com/S4uDc8YTM3

— Ennis Rakestraw Jr (@EnnisRakestraw) January 26, 2025

Rakestraw promises to work hard this offseason in order to return stronger in 2025 and be more available to support Kelvin Sheppard.

Rakestraw said, “I’m going to be at the Star in Texas, where I trained during my draft process.” “I have a lot of resources, and they’re going to see a lot of database trainers, including Kerby (Joseph), B.B. (Brian Branch), and (Terrion Arnold) T.A. I’m going to go out and continue to strengthen our brotherhood while accompanying them to DB trainers. Since I was unable to play this year, I am strengthening my relationship with them.

The former Missouri Tigers defensive back played 46 defensive snaps in 2024 and missed nine games. He is currently working to strengthen his body so that he can be more available in the future.

“My body feels fantastic. I simply regret how the season concluded. I was already injured when I arrived, having suffered a sports hernia,” Rakestraw remarked. “I arrived here with limited resources, and they worked really well with me in the training room. I had another hamstring injury, but they helped me get better until I felt fantastic. I was unable to display it because the season didn’t work out for us. I’ll be back, all right.

A former quarterback for the Detroit Lions is now a rising coaching star.

It is anticipated that David Blough will advance swiftly in the coaching hierarchy.

David Blough, a former quarterback for the Detroit Lions, is rapidly gaining popularity as a coach.

The former long-time backup quarterback has attracted a lot of interest from teams with younger quarterbacks in just one season as a National Football League coach.

The Jets, Jaguars, and Bears are reportedly interested in hiring the current assistant quarterbacks coach from the Washington Commanders to join their coaching staffs.

Blough’s work with rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels and his support of Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury with game preparation and specific play calls have garnered him high praise.

The Jets currently have a quarterbacks coach vacancy, and Blough is reportedly interested in joining Chicago as their passing game coordinator. Former members of the Lions’ coaching staff, Aaron Glenn and Ben Johnson, are the coaches of the Jets and Bears, respectively.

“Blough played at Purdue from 2014-18 under coaches Jeff Brohm (2017-18) and Darrell Hazell (2014-16),” according to Boilermakers OnSI. In his senior year, he developed into one of the Big Ten’s best passers, completing 66% of his passes and throwing for 3,705 yards and 25 touchdowns.

In 2019, the 29-year-old joined the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent. He was acquired by the Lions before the season began in exchange for a conditional seventh-round draft pick in 2022.

The rookie quarterback found himself finishing the 2019 Lions season as the team’s starter after injuries to Jeff Driskel and Matthew Stafford.

He started his coaching career in 2024 in Washington and last signed with Detroit’s practice squad in 2023.

#Commanders assistant QB coach David Blough has a request from the #Jets to interview for their QB coach jobs as well as a request from the #Bears for passing game coordinator, sources say. Blough, 29, is garnering attention only one year into his coaching career. pic.twitter.com/6T3Ue8ItBj

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) January 29, 2025

MAAKARON JOHN

Since 2013, John Maakaron has reported on Detroit Sports. brings a wide range of experience covering the Oakland University Golden Grizzlies, Michigan Wolverines, Detroit Mercy Titans, Michigan State Spartans, Detroit Tigers, and Detroit Lions. John’s experience as a sports broadcaster is extensive. John came up with the idea to start the Detroit Sports Podcast Network in 2013. possesses more than 3000 podcasts that analyse Detroit sports. Detroit Sports Podcast and Sports Illustrated Media Group, a historical sports media outlet, teamed up in 2019 to supply daily Lions content for the latter’s developing and growing digital media platform. The Oakland newspaper also features our Lions content. His coverage of the local teams reflects his passion for Detroit sports!