Some players are born fast. For others, it takes them awhile to catch up.
In Aaron Brown's first two seasons as a Lions running back, his athletic ability has outraced his mental grasp of the game. For all his speed and versatility as a runner and pass catcher, Brown had miscues that led to negative yardage and trouble gaining his coaches' trust.
Brown showed a different and more complete side in Saturday's 34-10 exhibition victory over New England. He started for injured Jahvid Best, played into the fourth quarter, gained 30 yards on nine carries, caught four passes for 48 yards -- including a 9-yard touchdown pass -- and never lost yardage.
"I'm just taking everything for what it is,"
Brown said, "and when my number's called, just try to perform to the best of my ability. And just really focus on the attention to detail, because I know the physical part I'm blessed with, but it's more or less the attention to detail: where I've got a protection, how far a route I should run, my steps on this track versus that track, stuff like that."
Brown said he has become a better student in the classroom and has received some tough love from running backs coach Sam Gash.
Best missed three days of practice last week recovering from a concussion, giving Brown the bulk of the reps with the first-team offense. Brown said that was a big motivation for elevating his game.
"Absolutely, because I know you can't really BS,"
he said. "If I'm going to take the load for the first team, I better have my stuff together. Just knowing that, I'm really focusing, I'm (working) a lot of stuff out, and I've learned a lot of mistakes that I've messed up my first two years. And I just want to eliminate that and become a better player."
