Malcolm Rodriguez: Fighting for Playing Time

As a retired high school football coach from Oklahoma, I’ve had some opportunities to see some truly special  players come through the high school ranks and move up to play college football and make it to the NFL.  Detroit Lions rookie LB Malcolm Rodriguez was impressive at Wagoner High School in Wagoner, OK and current Lions fans watching this training camp may not know that he was actually a starting QB  in high school as well as playing in the secondary.

Undersized but not underworked.

Malcolm Rodriguez received light recruitment interest coming out of high school switched over to safety at Oklahoma State.  Later in his collegiate career, Rodriguez moved over to LB for the the Cowboys. Rodriguez wasn’t by far the largest LB in the Big 12 5’11”, 230 lbs.)  and stands even smaller in an NFL training camp but his size isn’t a detriment; as the saying goes “it’s not the size of the dog in the fight but the fight in the dog” and Rodriguez fits this description perfectly. Rodriguez got selected by the Lions in the sixth round of this year’s NFL Draft and initially wasn’t targeted to compete for a starting position this season.

Making a name for himself in training camp and preseason games.

Rodriguez quickly made a name for himself within the first week of training camp with his work ethos and earned playing time in the first preseason game against the Eagles.  In that game, Rodriguez made two tackles – one on defense and an assisted tackle on special teams.  Furthermore, Rodriguez was spotlighted in the latest episode of “Hard Knocks” and the Lions coaching staff from position coach Kelvin Sheppard to DC Aaron Glenn.

The Lions are utilizing Rodriguez at both the inside LB spot (Mike) and outside/weak side LB slot (Will.)  Rodriguez played both safety and linebacker in college; this versatility allowed him to comfortable against the run and in pass coverage.  Rodriguez’ former QB time in high school gives him a bit of a competitive advantage in being able to ready quarterback play unfold in real time.

Earning playing time with starting LB’s.

With Week Two of the preseason approaching, Rodriguez earned starting playing time to prove that his performance in camp and against the Eagles wasn’t a fluke.  Although no player chosen by the Lions in the sixth round or later has started a season opener in over 20 years, Rodriguez seems to take whatever playing time given to him in stride.  Even if he doesn’t get the starting nod, Rodriguez may find himself in a productive role on special teams and still may move up to a starting LB role with the Lions as the season progresses.  If I was a betting man on the Lions, I would bet a decent wager that Malcolm Rodriguez will find a way to get meaningful playing time by the season opener next month.

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