The Detroit Lions had a tough start to the preseason on Thursday night. Hendon Hooker and Kyle Allen struggled to move the offense in a 34-7 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. While the defense limited the Chargers to 4.4 yards per play, they played on a short field all night due to the five giveaways the Lions produced on the night, and it was an ugly night that had Dan Campbell demanding more.
Although it was a tough night, there were some bright spots. A Lions rookie stood out above the malaise and showed some of the traits that made him one of Brad Holmes’s favorite players in the draft. With his strong performance in the opener, it leaves Lions fans wanting to see more and potentially gives Detroit a diamond in the rough as the preseason schedule continues.
Lions Rookie Isaac TeSlaa Has Opportunity to Build on Solid Preseason Opener
One of the Lions’ most controversial picks in April’s draft came when they selected wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa with the 70th overall pick. Part of the shock came from his path to the NFL, which began as a quarterback at a junior college and continued as a seldom-used wide receiver at Arkansas. But it also was the leap of faith that Holmes took to acquire him, trading up a full round to take the Hudsonville, Mich. native.
The gamble was a strong one considering he caught just 62 passes for 896 yards and five touchdowns in his two seasons with the Razorbacks. But he also had a strong athletic profile that saw him post a 9.97 relative athletic score at 6-foot-3 and 214 pounds.
Isaac TeSlaa is a WR prospect in the 2025 draft class. He scored an unofficial 9.97 #RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 11 out of 3441 WR from 1987 to 2025.
— RAS.football (@MathBomb) March 2, 2025
Splits projected, times unofficial.https://t.co/ZeBq0A5q6I pic.twitter.com/Lsue3G6W2w
Those numbers caused Holmes to declare TeSlaa as his favorite receiver in this year’s draft and it was validated when he took the field on Thursday night. TeSlaa caught two passes for 46 yards in the loss, but he also did most of the little things, winning on blocking reps and even logging nine special teams.
“Obviously, you know, when you get to this level, everyone’s going to be bigger and faster and stronger, but I mean, to a degree, you’re pretty surprised when you get out there, just the level of play,” TeSlaa said of his preseason debut. “So now that I’ve seen firsthand what it’s like, just continue to grow every single day.”
Like a lot of the Lions, TeSlaa’s debut wasn’t perfect, and there are some things to work on in a receiver room that includes Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. But the 23-year-old’s development will be one of the things Detroit fans will have their eyes on as the preseason continues.