A year ago at this time, Ifeatu Melifonwu was preparing to face a quarterback named Kenny Pickett, a receiver named Jordan Addison and the rest of the Pittsburgh Panthers' offense. Not exactly Aaron Rodgers, Davante Adams and the Green Bay Packers on Monday Night Football.
"I didn’t really envision this," Melifonwu said Wednesday. "I wasn’t thinking about that. I was just thinking about my matchups."
For the Lions, it feels like deja-vu. After losing their top corner in Week 1 last season, they went to Lambeau Field in Week 2 and watched Jeff Okudah get taken to school by Rodgers and the Packers in his first career start. Now the injured corner is Okudah, done for the year with a ruptured Achilles, and Melifonwu is the rookie stepping into the fire.
"Welcome to the NFL as a rookie corner," Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said Friday. "It doesn’t matter who you are, when you were drafted, where you came from, every quarterback and every offensive coordinator is going to try (to target) a rookie DB. But it’s all about playing that position. He expects it, we expect it. He’s been having good practices. He had a good training camp and I look forward to seeing the player play.”
You can bet Rodgers looks forward to seeing him too. Coming off one of the worst games of his career, you can bet Rodgers looks forward to seeing this Lions defense at large. You can bet he'll sling it in Melifonwu's direction early and often, just like he attacked Okudah last year on his first pass of the game. It was a 15-yard completion and the start of a blowout for Green Bay.
"There's not a lot of tape on (Melifonwu), obviously," Rodgers said this week. "But anytime you've got young guys, you're going to test them."
A third-round pick of the Lions, Melifonwu has the tools to be a star. A 'superstar,' if you believe Louis Riddick. He has a nose for the ball, and a rare combination of size and speed for his position. As he said the night he was drafted, he can do "things other corners can’t." Not many corners can contain Rodgers and Adams. Melifonwu is eager to give it a shot.
"It’s not daunting," he said of the matchup with two of the best in the game. "It’s exciting. It’s just a chance to prove yourself, that’s really what it is."
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We'll see how Glenn and the Lions deploy their corners on Monday. One way or another, Melifonwu is going to see some of Adams. Maybe lots. He's studying as much film as he can of the four-time Pro Bowler, whose talent probably transcends the tape.
"He’s definitely a great receiver, his releases. And just paired with Aaron Rodgers it’s a crazy duo," Melifonwu said. "I’ve watched him and I'm definitely going to keep studying him."
Melifonwu turned 22 in May. He's the youngest member of the youngest group of cornerbacks in the NFL. He doesn't want for confidence, which he says is "rooted in myself, in my coaches and in my teammates." He'll need it on Monday, along with a short memory. The Lions are bringing a rookie corner back to Lambeau, this time on football's biggest stage.
"I’m more just thinking about the game plan and what I can do. I’m not really thinking about the big lights," Melifonwu said. "I’m locked in."