ALLEN PARK >> Jim Caldwell calls Ziggy Ansah a rare cat.
Not only is the Lions defensive end tied with Houston’s J.J. Watt for most sacks in the NFL at 11.5, his sack moves aren’t always his best moves.
“Well, the one thing that jumps out at you was not a sack, it’s when he ran all the way down the field and tackled (Adrian Peterson) on about the four-yard line to keep him out of the endzone, which was unbelievable effort and hustle,” coach Jim Caldwell said. “I think that epitomizes him. When you look at him – you watch even the play where he ends up with the sack-fumble (against the Eagles), he knocks the ball out, he’s on his back, he gets up and scrambles and gets a loose ball before anybody else around him. There were about six or seven guys around the ball before they can get to it. That’s the kind of intensity that young man has. He’s a rare cat, now. Very, very rare breed.”
Kind of fitting that he is a Lion.
“I wish we could bottle it. That’s what every coach, every GM, every president, every scout, they’re all looking for that particular formula and the fact of the matter is, it’s developed in so many different ways. Whether it’s hardship growing up sometimes, or it’s a chip on the shoulder, something that’s happened to them early on in life, the great majority of them are born that way or there’s something that happens environmentally along the way that creates that kind of fire and intensity that’s consistent,” Caldwell said.
“Now, you’ll find a great majority of the guys in this game have that. You start doing a little background and you find that the great majority of them played this game because of something that just – the competitive nature of it, the physicality of the game, they’re drawn to it, they excel at it, they have the kind of courage that it takes, they can deal with pain. There’s a pretty special group of men that we’re blessed to work with. That’s one of the great reasons why I absolutely enjoy my job. It’s pretty special.”
Of course it helps when coach a guy like Ansah. Even though he’s only played football for a handful of years he has a great understanding of the game and Caldwell has said many times that Ansah is scratching the surface.
Definition of a catch
While Caldwell was talking about Ziggy Ansah’s knowledge of the game, the coach was asked if Ansah knows what an NFL catch is since it appears to be a subject of much dispute.
“I think that’s somewhat debatable all across this country at this point and time. I do know what a catch is. Like I tell our guys, I know what it is, when you catch it and you toss it to the official, that’s a catch. Anything else can be disputed, but that, I know for certain, is a catch,” Caldwell said.
Ins and outs
Calvin Johnson did not practice on Tuesday after limited practice on Monday and no practice on Sunday.
Center Travis Swanson did not participate in Tuesday’s practice after being limited on Sunday and Monday with an ankle injury.
Wide receiver Lance Moore (ankle) missed his third straight day of practice which makes it seem unlikely he will be ready to go on Thursday night.
Safety Glover Quin (ankle) practiced on a limited basis just like on Monday. Defensive tackle Caraun Reid (ankle) who was limited on Monday did not work on Tuesday.
Kicker Matt Prater was not seen on the practice field. He missed on Monday with an illness.
James Ihedigbo (hamstring) also was limited for the second straight day.
A big Iowa fan
With no apologies to Michigan State, Iowa alum Jim Caldwell will be cheering for the Iowa Hawkeyes in Saturday night’s Big Ten championship game.
“It’s been a while. They had some really good teams when Hayden (Fry) was there. Kirk (Ferentz) had some good teams since – he’s been there 19 years – so he’s had some good teams as well. But this is quite special,” Caldwell said.
“They’ve put together a program that you rarely hear any bad things about them in terms of the student athletes that they have there on the campus. They handle themselves the right way, they win the right way and right now it’s a great national stage that they’re on and they’re deserving of it. But great, great group of coaches too, great group of men and I’m happy for them,” he added.
Carter held back
Alex Carter held much promise when he was drafted in the third round. He still does, but he won’t be able to display it until next season.
The Lions decided not to activate the rookie cornerback who was placed on injured reserve with the designation to return with an ankle injury before the season started.
“We looked at it from a number of different aspects – physically where he is in terms of how quickly we think he can be a factor for us, all those kinds of things. We thought this was the best decision,” Caldwell said on Tuesday.
Carter was the victim of circumstances and a wonky ankle.
He missed most of the spring work and OTAs because he was still in class at Stanford.
Then the ankle kept him out of most of training camp so naturally he’s behind in learning and running the defense.
“We don’t run the standard line-up-and-play-cat coverage kind of defense – you’ve got that cat, that cat and that cat. There are some complexities to our defense, it takes a while to get it down,” Caldwell said.
He has practiced just in the last three weeks giving the Lions a chance to see if they would activate him to the 53-man roster. Through the end of the season he’ll be allowed to attend meetings but not to practice.
Captains
Calvin Johnson, Darryl Tapp and Don Muhlbach will serve as captains on Thursday night against the Packers.
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