The Detroit Lions kicked off their mandatory minicamp on Tuesday. The two days of practice will be the last time the Lions will be on the field together before training camp. It will give the coaching staff another opportunity to evaluate some of the position battles and players on the roster bubble.
One of those players is running back Sione Vaki. Entering his third season in Detroit, Vaki is currently the RB3 on the depth chart, but he is running out of time to establish his NFL career.
Despite contributing very little since he was a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Vaki hasn't lost the trust of the Lions' top brass. In fact, the team doesn't seem to be willing to admit the obvious reality when it comes to Vaki.
Lions don't want to admit it but the writing is on the wall for RB Sione Vaki
Speaking to the media on Tuesday, head coach Dan Campbell called Vaki "pound for pound" one of the team's better athletes, per Jeremy Reisman of The Pride of Detroit. Campbell added that they would love to get Vaki more involved in the offense, but said that the 24-year-old rusher is still raw and has very limited experience.
Even though the Lions may not want to admit it, it's clear that the Vaki pick hasn't worked out. It's not a great sign that any player is still considered "raw" after two full years in the league without a serious injury. Reading between the lines, Campbell is suggesting that Vaki will mostly be a special teamer once again.
Vaki may be one of the better athletes on the team, but that doesn't mean much if he can't translate that to the field. Perhaps this is an admission that Vaki's best position isn't RB.
Throughout high school and college, Vaki played both sides of the ball and was a productive safety with the University of Utah. If the Lions don't trust him to get offensive reps, maybe it's time to give him more of a look at safety, especially as the team is dealing with injuries on the secondary.
The Lions have a habit of believing in their draft picks for too long and not cutting ties when they need to. A similar thing is happening with Giovanni Manu right now as well. Although the writing is clearly on the wall, Campbell and the coaching staff continue to praise Vaki as if to justify their selection in the draft.
Unless Vaki shows more than he has so far during training camp and preseason, the Lions should look elsewhere for RB depth. Especially after Jacob Saylors emerged last season as a good special teamer, perhaps he could earn the RB3 spot in the rotation. There is very little reason to keep betting on Vaki if he is still not past the "raw prospect" stage.
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