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ALLEN PARK -- Terrion Arnold said his mood was brightened by being back at practice after the bye week. The second-year cornerback continues to inch closer to returning for the Detroit Lions. Arnold has missed the last two games due to a shoulder injury. He avoided injured reserve via a positive second opinion after the initial reports made it sound like it could cost him the season. When asked by MLive if he was set to return against the Minnesota Vikings this Sunday, the 22-year-old said he’s trusting the coaching staff and is focused on trying to make every play count in practice. “It’s frustrating,” Arnold said of dealing with the injury and missing games. “But just being able to be in a place where coach (Dan) Campbell has created an environment where even when you’re not out there with your guys, you still feel like you’re contributing. Just being able to come in here with a peace of mind. I would say just trusting in God and trusting the process. So, it hasn’t been that hard.” Arnold practiced once last week before missing another session and the win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But last year’s first-round pick practiced fresh off the bye week. Campbell said he was looking forward to seeing how Arnold responded to practicing with the pads equipped, and that the Lions would “get a really good look at him.” “I felt pretty good,” Arnold told MLive after Tuesday’s practice. “Like, just being able to be back out there. It’s one of those things where you realize you don’t know how much you miss it until you’re not doing it. “It was a blessing to me to be able to be back out there, and it definitely brightened my mood.” Arnold endured some bumpy times to open the year. But he and the team felt he was playing much better before the shoulder injury slowed him down. Detroit’s defense plays a ton of man coverage, with the second-year corner playing on an island a ton to open his career. He’s battle-tested in man coverage, showed the ability to improve down the stretch as a rookie, and he plays the way the Lions covet. The Lions have been forced to shuffle pieces around and start new faces in the secondary over the last couple of weeks. Against the Bucs before the bye, the defense was without four starters and some serious depth in the secondary. But Amik Robertson, Rock Ya-Sin and Nick Whiteside held things down at outside cornerback. Erick Hallett, Thomas Harper and Loren Strickland filled the void at safety, and Arthur Maulet saw more action as the nickelback. Detroit’s defense allowed just 9 points against the previously red-hot Buccaneers. Baker Mayfield had a brutal day, and while the pass rush deserves a ton of credit, the makeshift secondary’s performance was massive. Arnold is inching closer to returning. Fellow starting cornerback D.J. Reed has at least one game left on his injured reserve stint. Safety Brian Branch is back from suspension, and Avonte Maddox returned to practice after the bye, too. Kerby Joseph continues to work through lingering knee issues. But the Lions have been confident that the bye week would have done a lot of good for the All-Pro safety. That said, add Arnold’s name to the long list of those motivated and impressed by the depth defensive backs answering the call last week. “Anytime you have a group of guys go out there and put on the performance that they did, man, it speaks volumes,” Arnold said. “And I would say just them being able to go out there and cover, like, that’s impressive. But them being able to go out there and be on the same page and have the camaraderie and gel, how they gelled and displayed that on Monday Night Football, it was like art. “Anytime you see good DB play, you’re gonna know about it. Anytime you see bad DB play, you’re gonna know about it. So, just being able to go out there and see that and even be on the sidelines (for it), that energy, man, it was awesome.”
