NO ASTERISK REQUIRED FOR LIONS
The Detroit Lions can bask in the afterglow of one of their biggest wins in years before getting back to work.
Detroit beat the Kansas City Chiefs 21-20 Thursday night and don’t play again until hosting Seattle on Sept. 17.
“It’s crucial,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said Friday. “I think it’s big to rest the body for about three days before we get ready for Seattle.
“I think it’s huge and I think it worked out perfect for us.”
The Lions matched, or perhaps exceeded, the hype about their ascending franchise with a road win over the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs.
“Not the same old Lions, the 1-0 Lions,” NBC’s Mike Tirico said during the broadcast.
Tirico went on to mention Kansas City’s win over the defending champion New England Patriots several years ago on the road in an opener that announced the Chiefs would be a factor.
“This has an asterisk because
of no Chris Jones and no Travis Kelce, but after what you saw at the end of last year and what you saw tonight, the blue and silver is for real,” Tirico said.
Campbell was asked a day later about what Tirico said with a question that didn’t include the rest of the broadcaster’s sentence.
“Well, is there an asterisk by the 1-0?” Campbell asked.
Tirico, who lives in Michigan, was inundated with interview requests on Friday.
“If you listen to the entirety of what I said, it’s much more in context with just lifting half the quote,” he said. “I understand the disappointment with the word asterisk, and that’s OK.”
Campbell said at the top of the team’s to-do list is improving the offense’s tempo.
“We can be so much better,” he said.
Injury updates
The Browns will begin the season against Joe Burrow with their best defensive back, but maybe not their full starting secondary.
Two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward cleared concussion protocol and will start Sunday’s opener against Cincinnati, giving Cleveland its top coverage defender as it tries to slow Burrow and his trio of receivers.
Ward had been sidelined with his fourth reported concussion in the NFL. He got hurt in an Aug. 26 exhibition in Kansas City and was limited to some individual drills earlier this week before fully practicing Friday.
While the Browns will have Ward, they could be without starting safety Juan Thornhill, who is questionable with a calf injury.
• Packers wide receiver Christian Watson won’t play in Sunday’s season opener at Chicago while he deals with a hamstring injury.
• Haason Reddick hasn’t missed a game in his first six seasons, so the Pro Bowl edge rusher won’t let thumb surgery keep him off the field. Reddick will line up Sunday and go after Mac Jones when the Eagles visit the Patriots.
Notable
Giants kicker Graham Gano signed a three-year contract extension. The 36year-old Gano has made 91.8 percent of his field-goal attempts since joining the Giants in 2020, the best percentage in franchise history for anyone with at least 50 attempts.
• Raiders defensive end Chandler Jones isn’t expected to play in Sunday’s season opener at the Broncos, according to Las Vegas coach