DETROIT >> Jake Rudock made his case in Thursday night’s 31-0 preseason win that he deserves a spot on the Lions 53-man roster.
Since he’s a quarterback, the decision for the coaches and scouts is a little tougher.
In 2015 they kept just two quarterbacks – Matthew Stafford and Dan Orlovsky.
Now they must decide whether to also create room for Rudock, a sixth-round draft pick out of Michigan.
Coach Jim Caldwell implied after the game that the decision has not been made.
Rudock was impressive throwing three touchdown passes and scrambling for 31 rushing yards on four carries. He wa 14 of 23 for 171 yards in just over three quarters of work.
“He played well, he did an excellent job,’ Caldwell said.
Again the coach pointed out that Rudock has been trending up.
“That” what it’s been a good, steady growth. He’s grasping the offense better and better and better,” Caldwell said. “He’s a smart guy anyway, he works at it, he makes some nice throws this evening and did a nice job of operating the offense. We didn’t do a whole lot of no huddle out there, we huddled pretty much every time, but he still did a nice job of getting us out of some bad plays. He’s developing.”
Rudock obviously was happy with the way they played.
He was able to get in a flow after taking over late in the first quarter.
“That’s huge for a quarterback. I think, like you said, you kind of get in a flow, you get in a groove down there,” Rudock said. “You kind of start seeing things a little bit more, rather than having a smaller sample size, so to say.”
He agrees with Caldwell about his growth from the first game.
“I think the biggest thing that you grow from is having those snaps … It’s a blessing to be able to go out there and play and have a couple games to get your feet underneath you,” Rudock said.
Hyder comes up huge
In the final preseason game against the Bills last year, Kerry Hyder had three fumble recoveries which isn’t easy to do mostly because it’s rare to have that opportunity.
On Thursday night, the defensive end, who spent last season on the practice squad, had three sacks and another negated because of a penalty.
“You know great things come in threes,” Hyder said. “I’m doing pretty good about that. At least it was sacks instead of fumbles this time.”
None of this was not a surprise to Caldwell.
“He has great desire, great effort. Last year he was inside, this year he was outside. He changed his body type in order to fit in to where we thought he might be more suitable for us. He’s one of those guys who loves to play,” Caldwell said.
“Last year anytime we were working offense vs. defense and he was on the look squad, he had a knack of getting to the quarterback,” the coach added. “He’s not flashy. But his effort, desire. He’s skilled in terms of his ability to make you miss a pass protector. He can put pressure on the quarterback, he has a unique knack, a great effort.”
Like so many, he is fighting for a roster spot.
“I always try to put my best foot forward. You know when you leave preseason you just want to leave something fresh on their minds and I was happy to put a stamp on my resume tonight,” Hyder said.
Undrafted in 2014, he was on the Lions practice squad last year and signed on Jan. 2.
This and that
The Lions and Bills all stood for the national anthem. … Dan Orlovsky was 5 of 10 for 42 yards, playing most of the first quarter. … Jace Billingsley led all receivers with seven catches for 80 yards and a touchdown. … Jay Lee was right behind with six receptions for 78 yards and a touchdown. … Dwayne Washington led the rushing attack with seven carries for 68 yards, including a 58-yard touchdown scamper. … Rookie Antwione Williams led the defense with seven tackles. .. Rookie Anthony Zettel had a sack and a pass defense. … Brandon Copeland had the only interception.
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