DETROIT >> It was all about getting some youngsters time on the field to see if they are good enough to land on the 53-man roster.
As a bonus, the Detroit Lions beat the Buffalo Bills 31-0 in the fourth and final preseason game on Thursday night at Ford Field. The Lions, who finished the preseason 2-2, open the regular season on Sept. 11 at the Indianapoli Colts.
The final NFL roster cuts are due at 4 p.m. on Saturday and certainly there are players still on the bubble.
A few of them helped themselves with standout play as most of the starters sat.
It started early for rookie running back Dwayne Washington who scored his third preseason touchdown on a 58-yard scamper on the Lions’ third play in the first series. Washington, the seventh-round pick, got a nice block from tight end Andrew Quarless on the second-and-10 play.
Washington wasn’t done. He finished with seven carries for 68 yards.
He didn’t have an opportunity on kick returns – that went to wide receiver Jace Billingsley who also had a big night.
Billingsley, an undrafted rookie, is fighting for one of the final wide receiver roster spots. He was targeted a half-dozen times with five catches for 23 yards in the first half.
In the third quarter rookie quarterback Jake Rudock connected with Billingsley for a 47-yard gain.
Jay Lee, another undrafted wide receiver, got plenty of snaps and seemed to make the most of them too.
In the first half, he had six catches for 78 yards. With less than a minute left in the first half, Rudock found Lee in the end zone for a two-yard touchdown play that gave the Lions a 17-0 edge at the half.
Linebacker Antwione Williams, a sixth-round draft pick, was stellar in the first half, leading the defense with six tackles. He’s had a good camp and a solid preseason. This final game should help his cause. Even when he wasn’t credited with a tackle, seems like he was in on several plays. He was one of the reasons that the Bills were held to 45 net yards (minus-7 passing) in the first half.
Of course Williams wasn’t out there alone. Linebacker Kyle Van Noy saw plenty of action. He appeared to have won the starting job at strongside linebacker and helped himself on Thursday night.
Kerry Hyder, who is in the mix at defensive end, finished with a pair of first-half sacks. He added another in the third quarter although it was negated by a penalty from cornerback Alex Carter. Hyder added another late in the fourth quarter.
Matthew Stafford didn’t play a snap with Dan Orlovsky getting the start.
When Orlovsky took a seat just before the end of the first quarter the Lions were up 10-0. He was 5-of-10 for 42 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
He will be Stafford’s backup because he has a handle on the complicated Jim Bob Cooter offense better than Rudock who played three quarters.
Rudock had three touchdown passes and moved the ball fairly well against the Bills’ second or third defense.
His 17-yard run, ending with the picture-perfect NFL quarterback slide (feet first), led to a touchdown three plays later when he hit Billingsley late in the third quarter.
Rudock had a nice run and found tight end Adam Fuehne, another undrafted rookie, in the endzone for a 5-yard touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.
Rudock finished 14-of-23 for 171 yards and no interceptions, He also had two carries for 33 yards.
Defensive end Brandon Copeland grabbed the Lions’ only interception early in the fourth quarter, picking off Bills rookie quarterback Cardale Jones.
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