Lions Notes: Orlovsky, Washington, Carter

Well-traveled backup quarterback Dan Orlovsky re-signed with the Lions this offseason after spending 2015 as the team’s No. 2 signal-caller behind Matthew Stafford. However, the Lions drafted Michigan’s Jake Rudock in the sixth round of this year’s draft–the first time Detroit has drafted a QB since selecting Stafford himself in 2009–and that selection immediately put Orlovsky’s job in jeopardy. After all, new GM Bob Quinn was raised in a Patriots system that typically keeps just two quarterbacks, and rarely has the backup been a veteran.

But Dave Birkett of The Detroit Free Press writes that both head coach Jim Caldwell and OC Jim Bob Cooter sang Orlovsky’s praises after the conclusion of OTAs on Thursday, and as Rudock is a fairly raw prospect, the Lions may wind up keeping three quarterbacks in 2016, or even trying to stash Rudock on the practice squad. In any event, it is far too early to count Orlovsky out of the picture.

Now for more from the Motor City:

• Detroit selected running back Dwayne Washington in the seventh round of this year’s draft, but because NFL policy prohibits college players from practicing with their new teams until their academic year is over, Washington’s first OTA practice on Thursday was the team’s last OTA practice, which puts him at a major disadvantage. However, as Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com writes, Washington’s speed was on full display on Thursday, and Washington himself indicated that the practice went as well as could be expected.
• Speaking of Washington, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com says the former University of Washington Husky could insert himself into the team’s running back equation, but if he had to handicap the RB race right now, Rothstein believes Ameer Abdullah, Theo Riddick, Stevan Ridley, and Zach Zenner would make the club (although Ridley’s and Zenner’s spots are certainly up for grabs).
• In the same piece, Rothstein says Alex Carter, last year’s third-round selection, is expected to be a significant part of the Lions’ cornerback rotation. Carter suffered an ankle injury during the early stages of training camp last season and did not play a single snap for Detroit, but Rothstein pegs him as the team’s No. 4 corner behind Darius Slay, Quandre Diggs, and Nevin Lawson.
• We learned several days ago that Stephen Tulloch is still unsure as to whether he will be on the team in 2016, and we also learned that the Lions waived wideout Corey Washington with an injury designation.