Cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr. is in his third season in Detroit after being drafted out of Missouri in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, but Sunday will be just his 10th game played in a Lions uniform due to injuries suffered his first couple years in the league.

Rakestraw's 10th game could be his most significant as the Lions plan to give him a long look, potentially even a start, at one of the outside cornerback spots. After being inactive the first two weeks of the season, Rakestraw saw significant snaps last Sunday against the Jets and held his own. He was thrown at four times and allowed one reception for six yards while also defending one pass.

"I thought he showed up," Lions head coach Dan Campbell said of Rakestraw's performance against the Jets. "He's going to get some more (opportunities) here. I thought he showed up. That was promising.

"I think the more opportunities he gets, the better he'll get. And look, he's got some cover-ability now. He's got some stickiness to him and that was promising. That was promising (Sunday) because I just thought he was strong at the catch point and he was, he was in phase."

The Lions enter Sunday's contest in Carolina ranked 32nd against the pass (299.3) squaring off against a Panthers' offense ranked No. 1 (295.7). Detroit was better in that area Sunday against the Jets but still need to continue to improve moving forward.

"It was fun to finally put some stuff together," Rakestraw said this week about his performance against the Jets. "It just means keep doing the little things right. Keep relying on my technique and trusting the guys that are around me and just seeing what I see and capitalizing on my opportunities."

Rakestraw said after watching the tape of the Jets game he was disappointed in the one catch he gave up on an out route. He said he was in perfect coverage to defend and shouldn't have given up the reception on a third-down play.

"I'm confident," he said heading into Sunday's matchup with the Panthers. "I just have to keep building and keep stacking get better in practice and go out there and do it again."

SCRUGGS' HOT START

Detroit's offensive line is coming off their best collective effort of the season as they're getting high-quality play early in the season from several different spots. One of those is center Juice Scruggs, which has been an important development early this season.

Detroit acquired Scruggs as part of the David Montgomery trade with Houston, and it's proven to be a savvy move. Scruggs was going to be an important reserve player at center and compete for a job at guard initially, but when center Cade Mays went down in training camp with a wrist injury, Scruggs was moved into the center role. He's responded by allowing zero sacks in three games and is currently the No. 2 graded run blocker at center by Pro Football Focus and No. 4 overall at the position.

"He works his tail off to make sure he's on top of it because the communication upfront is going to start with him. In terms of making sure that everything is on the same page, we're snapping the ball, we're going in the right direction, we're in the right play," Lions offensive coordinator Drew Petzing said of Scruggs. "He's done a really nice job of that.

"And I think the other piece that we talked about probably is when I first got here was the violence and the attitude that he plays with. He's a physical player. He plays fast, he plays free. And even when it's not perfect, you know he's going to go a hundred miles an hour and that makes a big difference."

Mays could be back from Reserve/Injured after the bye week, and it will be interesting to see what the Lions do with Scruggs when that time comes. He's playing great and could maybe compete for time at left guard.

EXTRA POINTS

• Edge rusher DJ Wonnum returned to practice Thursday after sitting out Wednesday with a back injury. That's good news heading into Sunday. Wonnum has played well opposite Aidan Hutchinson and comes off a two-sack performance against the Jets in Week 3.
• Heading into Sunday Night Football, the Lions are 14-5 in primetime under Campbell since 2021 (best in NFL).
• Carolina's defense has generated seven takeaways in three games, second-most in the NFL. Detroit has just one giveaway over their first three contests, tied for fewest in the NFL. That will be an interesting matchup.