In the middle of his first NFL season, Terrion Arnold declared that playing in the Lions' "defense is gonna get me paid, for real. When you cut on the tape, you’re like, 'OK, he’s a rookie, he’s backside, the safety’s in the run fit, he’s by himself.' Nobody else is doing that."
Indeed, Arnold played 50 more snaps in man coverage than any other corner in the league last season, and nearly 100 more than any other rookie corner, per Pro Football Focus. And while it wasn't always perfect, particularly with pass-interference penalties early in the year, Arnold allowed a completion percentage under 50 percent and a passer rating of 75.8 on man-cover throws.
"It was nothing but experience," Arnold said at the end of the season. "Like I always said, a lot of teams sit back and play zone. I had to go out there and challenge wide receiver 1’s, and I’m young. So I know, I’ll be the best corner in the league pretty soon."
That swagger is a prerequisite of playing his position, or at least playing it well. Take it from Arnold's position coach, former longtime NFL cornerback and fellow Alabama product Deshea Townsend. In his first three years in the league, Townsend failed to come down with an interception. He continued to scrap for the ball, broke through in year four and wound up with 21 of them in his career.
On Thursday, Arnold was in Townsend's office breaking down some film.
"He understands how they're attacking him, and he found out about himself, what do I do best? How can I make those strengths stronger, and my weaknesses, what do I do now, this offseason, to make them better?" said Townsend.
To Townsend, the Lions' defensive backs coach/passing game coordinator, the biggest area of improvement for Arnold is "tracking and locating the ball."
"As the season went, you saw some of the pass interferences go down. But our next step is, how can we get the ball back to the offense? How can we transition from man to ball, from it not being a PBU to an interception?" said Townsend. "That's one of the things that we talked about and some of the things we're working on to see how we can improve it: Where and when do I take a peek? When I'm in phase, go ahead and look.
"Those types of things, now he understands and he can play a little bit more, and have a little bit more freedom to take a chance to go make some plays."
Despite his 662 coverage snaps last season (303 in man), Arnold wound up with a goose egg in the interceptions column. It didn't get him down, but it no doubt gnawed at him after he led the SEC with five picks the year prior. The Lions believed in Arnold's ball skills then, and they believe in them now.
Worth noting, the NFL's top 10 corners last season in percentage of snaps in man coverage combined for seven interceptions; the top 10 in zone coverage combined for 17. It's much easier to have eyes on the quarterback in zone, and in turn make plays on the ball.
"When you play man a lot, a lot of times your back is turned. So therefore, you're looking at the (receiver), you're trying to transition from man to ball, which a lot of times doesn't go in your favor," said Townsend. "But I think for him, it's just that growth, being patient. They'll come. And when they come -- you've got to create them other ways -- they'll come in bunches."
The Lions will be counting on Arnold even more in year two. Carlton Davis III, their No. 1 corner last season, departed in free agency, leaving the job to either Arnold or free agent acquisition D.J. Reed. Reed has the experience as a seven-year vet, but Arnold has the more prototypical frame to take on top receivers on the outside. At 6'0 to Reed's 5'9, Arnold is better built for the role.
Both will be lynchpins of the Lions' defense, which is facing a gauntlet of quarterbacks on the road this year: Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Jayden Daniels, Jalen Hurts and Matthew Stafford, plus Jordan Love, Caleb Williams and J.J. McCarthy twice in the division. All of them have dangerous weapons on the outside.
The Lions know Reed can hold his own. Arnold showed he can, too. But can the former first-round pick do more than that? Can he swing games in his team's favor? Can he come up with those critical plays, by coming down with the ball?
"He is trying to be the best player he can be," said Townsend. "That's what it takes. You have to work on your craft. You have to find out how you can get better in the offseason. He's working that."