As Ifeatu Melifonwu spoke in front of his locker following the Lions' win over the Bears, Kindle Vildor chimed in from a couple stalls down: "He's baaaack!" A short while later, Amik Robertson overheard a question, leaned in and said, "You had a sack?? Damn!"
Robertson admitted he missed it, then explained, "That’s so crazy, man, he got a sack and they blitzed me about 84 times when I was at nickel -- no, they didn’t. They blitzed me a couple times, but I had a different role. But they say Iffy, that’s what he do."
It's certainly one of the things he does, as Melifonwu showed at the end of last season. He showed it again Sunday in his season debut after a long road back from injuries. He nearly took down Caleb Williams on a blitz on the Bears' opening drive, only for the first overall pick to elude him at the last second. Melifonwu made it up for it and got Williams on the Bears' final drive.
"I needed that, though," said Melifonwu. "I'm not gonna lie. That should help me. I fixed it and I got one later."
Melifonwu's return could be a boon to the Lions' diminished defense. They've lost playmakers at every level, including Carlton Davis III in the secondary. The hope is that they've gained one in Melifonwu. The long, fluid safety played 50 snaps in the Lions' 34-17 win over the Bears, with Brian Branch taking on more work in the slot as Robertson bounced outside to replace Davis.
"I had some rust to knock off, especially first quarter, and then I think toward the end I got into my groove, starting getting my wind back a little bit," said Melifonwu.
Asked what he liked most about his performance, he said, "Missing that many games and then coming back and playing that many snaps."
It's been a stop-and-start story for Melifonwu since arriving in Brad Holmes' first draft class. Injuries cost him 17 games over his first two seasons, and even hampered him last year while he managed to play in every game. He came into his own down the stretch and into the playoffs as a pass-rushing safety. He also showed a nose for the football.
Melifonwu was aiming to take off this season, before an ankle injury sidelined him in training camp. Then a finger injury, just as he was getting set to return last month. He leaned on his faith, family and friends to navigate some dark days, and ran back into the light Sunday in Chicago. And then the coaches "having the faith to put me right back in, that’s huge," said Melifonwu.
"I appreciate all the coaches, and I think they know that," he said.
Wide receivers coach Antwaan Randle El swung by Melifonwu's locker while a couple reporters waited to talk to him. Beaming, Randel El exclaimed, "Before you say anything with the interview, start with 13!"
"He’s talking about 13 wins," Melifonwu said with a smile, a franchise regular season record.
"That sh*t means a lot," he said. "Because when I got here, we went 3-13-1. So to see that we got 13 wins, that means a lot -- the experiences, and that I was a part of the change."
Melifonwu has only had a hand in one of those this year -- but his year is young. And his legs are fresh. The Lions have more wins to capture, two more in the regular season and three in the playoffs, to be exact. All he wants to do is "what I know I can do," he said, "and what my coaches and my teammates know I can do."
On Sunday, Melifonwu reminded everyone what he does.