The Missouri product played just eight games in 2024, but his mindset and versatility make him a player to watch entering training camp.
Training camp is nearly here, and with it comes a fresh start for players looking to carve out roles on a competitive Detroit Lions roster. For cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr., that fresh start couldn’t come soon enough. After a hamstring injury cut short his rookie season, the former Missouri standout is eager to show how he grew during his quasi redshirt year—and ready to prove why the Lions made him their pick in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft .
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Ennis Rakestraw
Expectations heading into 2024
For the second straight offseason, Brad Holmes had overhauled the secondary, but with a different approach this time around.
Brian Branch’s move to safety solidified the backend of Detroit’s defense, but with the release of Cam Sutton, the less-than-smooth departure of C.J. Gardner-Johnson , and the team moving on from reserves like Jerry Jacobs and Will Harris, there were plenty of spots up for grabs at all three cornerback spots.
Free agency brought the trade for Carlton Davis and the signing of Amik Robertson, but that was just the beginning. The Lions moved up in the first round to draft Terrion Arnold. When it was the turn for the Lions to pick again at pick No. 61, Holmes doubled down on the youth movement at cornerback when he drafted Rakestraw, a player some draftniks had plugged to Detroit in the first round of mocks during the pre-draft process.
During training camp and preseason, Rakestraw saw playing time at both outside and nickel corner, and it was the rookie’s physicality and athleticism that earned the attention and praise of head coach Dan Campbell.
“They [Rakestraw and Arnold] don’t mess around, for rookies, and they’re trying to win the rep and they’re trying to get better and they’re both athletic,” Campbell said during training camp. “So, you feel like, okay, there again, first day it’s not too big for them. They were ready for the challenge of it. Now, do they have a lot of work? Yeah, they do, so it was very encouraging.”
Rakestraw showed some impressive coverage skills in his only preseason action against the New York Giants , allowing just one catch for 0 yards and earning the team’s second-best coverage grade (81.7). Despite the strong showing, Rakestraw was behind both Arnold and Davis on the outside, and Robertson won the first crack at the team’s nickel spot. Special teams would be Rakestraw’s prime opportunity to make an impact heading into his rookie season, but the best ability is availability, and injuries could always pave the path to playing snaps on defense.
Actual role in 2024
Note: Stats are regular season only unless otherwise stated
8 games (0 starts)
Stats: 6 tackles
PFF defensive grade: 42.8 (176th out of 188 CBs who played at least 46 snaps)
PFF coverage grade: 41.0 (173rd out of 188)
PFF run defense grade: 53.3 (145th out of 188)
PFF tackling grade: 48.2 (129th out of 188)
Unfortunately for Rakestraw, the rookie’s NFL initiation was marred with injuries of his own. After earning 11 snaps on special teams in the season opener—and three snaps at outside cornerback—Rakestraw was in line to start at nickel cornerback in Week 2’s tilt against the Arizona Cardinals .
“A lot of people didn’t know that,” Rakestraw would reveal during locker room clean out in January. “I got hurt in warm-ups. So, it was kind of setback and step back.”
The hamstring injury that kept Rakestraw out of the starting lineup would continue to nag at him throughout his rookie season, landing him on injured reserve ahead of Detroit’s Week 12 game against the Indianapolis Colts and causing him to miss nine games in total—seven of those after being placed on IR.
When Rakestraw was on the field, he played in all four phases on special teams, earning 95 snaps of experience in that role. He wound up playing just 46 snaps on defense over those first 11 weeks, mostly during the team’s lopsided victories over the Dallas Cowboys (17) and Tennessee Titans (14).
Though his rookie season never got off the ground the way he or the team had hoped, Rakestraw managed to gain valuable experience—and perspective—in limited action.
“Every situation that came to me, ask anybody in the training room, anybody in the building, I took it under the chin and I kept going, showed face, smiled every day and it just didn’t go my way,” Rakestraw shared during his final media availability of the season. “And in some aspects in life, everything don’t go your way, but it’s not about that no more. It’s the next step. We already lost, game over with. Now, let’s develop a new habit, new body and be available. That’s all I can do.”
Outlook for 2025
Detroit’s offseason saw the team lose Carlton Davis to free agency, but in a one-to-one move, the Lions added D.J. Reed to be the team’s No. 1 cornerback. With both Reed and Arnold set as starters on the outside, it was reasonable to believe Rakestraw may be headed back to the spot he was in line to start at last season: the slot.
However, Deshea Townsend, the Lions defensive backs coach, let it be known that the team has a different set of plans for the second-year corner.
“Right now, we’re going to let him [Rakestraw] focus on outside, let him go compete out there,” Townsend said in May. “Amik [Robertson] has done a really good job (at nickel). We have Avonte [Maddox], who is another positional flex type of person. I think that will help him, as well.”
Working in Rakestraw’s favor is that competitive frame of mind he shared at the season’s end, and Townsend thinks Rakestraw recognizes the challenges ahead of his second year in the NFL.
“The thing I do like about how he came back is just his mindset,” Townsend said. “You can tell he understood what went wrong last year. And there are some things you can’t control, like injuries. For him, it’s now just, ‘how can I be stronger? What did I do last year, like being a rookie training for the combine and doing all that? Now, I get to really focus on myself and my craft a little bit more,’ not having to worry about those things. He understands.”
Contributing on special teams sounds like the likeliest route Rakestraw will get to make an impact on the field this season. From a big picture standpoint, Rakestraw could very well be the next in line to play the slot after this season since Robertson is playing the second year of his two-year contract he signed last offseason. But in the here and now—and after a season where the Lions dealt with more injuries than you could shake a stick at—it sounds like the team is valuing and prioritizing Rakestraw’s ability on the outside should his number get called.