ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) -Brandon Pettigrew thinks the Detroit Lions could have a spectacular offense this season.
He’s waiting for a chance to become part of it.
The tight end is working toward a full recovery from the knee injury that ended his rookie season on Thanksgiving Day. As has become customary when the Lions have two workouts on the same day, he sat out the morning session on Tuesday before practicing in the afternoon.
“We don’t want to take the risk of doing anything that might set him back,” Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. “We’re only going to have him working once a day, and there will be some days that we sit him out entirely. This isn’t a situation that we are going to rush.”
Pettigrew would love to be working with the first-team offense in every drill, but knows that wouldn’t be a good idea.
“I know that I have to take things slow, because this wasn’t a soft injury,” he said. “I don’t want to hurt this again.”
chunks of last year’s training camp with minor injuries, but says it has been easier to keep up this season.
“When you can’t practice as a rookie, it is really tough, because you don’t know the system and you aren’t used to the other players,” he said. “This year, I don’t feel like I’m falling behind. I know the offense and I know what is expected of me.”
After Pettigrew was hurt last season, the Lions couldn’t find anyone to take the defensive pressure off Calvin Johnson, but that shouldn’t be a problem this season. Not only do they expect Pettigrew to return, they have added wide receiver Nate Burleson, tight end Tony Scheffler and rookie running back Jahvid Best.
“I think there is big stuff about to happen on this offense,” Pettigrew said. “With all the guys we’ve got out there now, the sky is the limit.”
Pettigrew is also excited by the development he’s seen in his fellow sophomore – quarterback Matt Stafford.
“He came in with a lot of poise and he’s always been a very decisive player, but he’s definitely stepped up over the offseason,” Pettigrew said. “This could be a big year for him.”
Schwartz expects big things out of Pettigrew, as well.
ere he was playing as well as any tight end in the NFL.
“Then he got hurt, so that slowed things down, but he’s coming back. He’s great for us, because if you throw the ball in his zip code, he’s going to catch it and make a play.”
Notes: The Lions had to cut their morning practice short because they were short of healthy defensive backs after safety Randy Phillips had to leave while dealing with flu symptoms. Detroit has been nagged by injuries in the secondary throughout camp, and has never been able to get their top group on the field at the same time. … Schwartz said that Pettigrew, S Louis Delmas (groin) and LB DeAndre Levy (back) might make brief appearances Saturday in Denver. All three sat out the preseason opener last weekend in Pittsburgh. “We’d like to get them in, but it might just be a cameo,” he said. “It will depend how they feel later this week.” … The Lions signed DE Korey Bosworth Tuesday morning and waived DE Jason Hunter. Bosworth, an undrafted free agent out of UCLA, is the nephew of former college star and pro flop Brian Bosworth.
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