The Detroit Lions traded up to get cornerback Terrion Arnold in the 2024 draft, and with a need for an immediate contributor at that position he was thrown right into the proverbial fire. Early penalty issues drove some sentiment he should have his role scaled back, but if not for one missed game and three blowout wins he might have played nearly every defensive snap as a rookie.
No NFL cornerback, rookie or otherwise, played more man coverage snaps than Arnold did last season (307). His 204 press coverage snaps were also top-five in volume among all cornerbacks, and overall he was quite good when effectively put on an island. And as the season went on, perhaps with advice from an unexpected source as a driver, Arnold cleaned up his penalty issues (3 of 11 accepted penalties after Week 4).
After the Lions' playoff loss to the Washington Commanders, Arnold talked about his progress as a rookie.
"I learned a lot," Arnold said. "I feel like coming into this role it was a lot. I got better as the season went on. Started to find myself. It's just one of those things where really looking forward to next year. Looking forward to playing again, that’s all I think about."
Arnold knows his second season is a big one for him, and he is taking opportunities to step up in intangible ways this offseason.
Analysis of Terrion Arnold heading into 2025 stretches to ridiculous
Matt Holder of Bleacher Report has Arnold on his list of six 2024 first-round picks who must bounce back in 2025 to avoid being labeled as a bust.
"Fair or not, the Detroit Lions selected Terrion Arnold with the hopes he could solve one of the most significant issues from the year before, as cornerback was arguably their biggest weakness heading into last year's draft."
Overall, and for whatever it's ultimately worth, Pro Football Focus was not fond of Arnold's work as a rookie and Holder held that against him.
"However, the 24th overall selection got picked on as a rookie, surrendering the 10th-most receptions (56) among cornerbacks and a 99.2 passer rating when targeted during the regular season, according to Pro Football Focus."
"Last year was certainly a learning experience for the Alabama product. Speaking to his growth down the stretch of the team's schedule, he is expected to be a starter heading into year two."
Arnold started 15 of the 16 regular season games he played last season, and he basically played at least 90 percent of the Lions' defensive snaps in any game that was remotely competitive. So saying he's "expected to be a starter in year 2" is an oversimplification of his role, as if that's not the base expectation.
Then Holder really stretched to show how clearly he has missed indications of how Arnold is wired while tabbing a threat to his starting job.
"However, especially while playing for a team that has Super Bowl aspirations, he can't get too comfortable or afford to get off to a slow start in 2025....2024 free-agent addition Amik Robertson proved to be a versatile player last fall and could move to the boundary if Arnold isn't on top of his game."
To even lightly suggest Arnold could get complacent ("too comfortable") is a real stretch, moving beyond the simple bottom line that he has to play better this season or he will risk moving toward draft bust territory.
