ALLEN PARK, Mich. – The game of his life, the biggest game of his life, couldn't have come at a better time.
It was the Lions-Vikings in Minnesota, and there was a lot at stake. A team looking to keep its playoff hopes alive. Another looking for their first league title in 30 years.
While the ball floated in the air, history waited for its descent. It ended up in the hands of Ifeatu Melifonwu, who was able to take the game and the division decisively.
“I feel like it was my time,” Melifonwu said Sunday after the Detroit Lions' 30-24 win that clinched a playoff spot and the NFC North title. “It was my first interception in my career, so thank God for that. I was just at the post, I saw Justin Jefferson in the middle, facing the quarterback, and I jumped at him. When BB (Brian Branch) got one early and Kerby (Joseph) got two, I think it was a matter of time. My time came.”
And yet for a while it wasn't a given.
The initial returns were, as is often the case, promising. A new player, part of a regime's first NFL draft class, equipped with tools for days. It wasn't hard to envision Melifonwu as a future starter. His tape in Syracuse showed signs of this.
Melifonwu was selected in the third round of the 2021 draft and was the first player the Lions drafted using capital from the Matthew Stafford trade. He definitely looks the part. At 1.80 m, he is the tallest – and longest – defensive back on the squad. He combines that size with a speed of 4.48, a vertical height of 41.5 inches and a relative athletic rating of 9.7. A specimen of an athlete, one the Lions couldn't wait to get their hands on.
Melifonwu's career began as an outside cornerback, where his size and length were considered an advantage. He then moved to safety before his sophomore season. It is a step that requires a more intellectual mind capable of surveying the entire field. He also discussed this when he made the switch.
“I feel like the biggest challenge was mental,” Melifonwu said in August 2022. “In the corner you only see half the field and you're kind of waiting for a safety to make the decision to you. But in the safety area you see the entire field and have to make the decision. You have to know when to come down. You need to know when you'll be back. I sometimes have the feeling that you don't have a precise mission in midfield. But at the corner you always cover the man in front of you. You have to be disciplined with your eyes and stay on the pedal, so it’s just a little different.”
Such a change takes time. By year three, the Lions likely expected Melifonwu to be a mainstay in the starting lineup. Instead, he was a mainstay on the injury list, playing a total of 17 games in his first two seasons.
Due to injuries, the time he needed to learn safety on the job, and other roster changes, Melifonwu was somewhat of an afterthought heading into the 2023 season. Development is not always linear, but flashes are important in signaling the bigger picture. Melifonwu's flashes were rare.
But the Lions kept him around, knowing full well that things could work out at any time.
“I’m a big fan of safeties that come from a corner background,” Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said Thursday. “That's one of the reasons he's here because he's able to cover as we need to, for example on a corner kick, but he's strong enough and physical enough to get into the box as a safety and Making plays.”… One of Iffy’s biggest problems was that he was healthy the whole time and then he made that transition. Man, that's not an easy transition because he came in as a cornerback. (But) now he understands exactly what we’re looking for in safeties.”
“You would like to say that every freshman is going to realize that vision right away, but that's not the reality, that's not the truth,” coach Dan Campbell said recently. “Every person grows at different rates. For some it happens quickly. For some it is already late in the year. For some of them it is the second year. Some of this is the third year we’re experiencing right now with a few of our guys.”
It's easy to look at the Lions' roster, see all the key players contributing as rookies and compare them to those who needed more time. But Campbell has a point. Check out the Lions' 2021 draft class. First-round pick Penei Sewell was a star on offense from day one. Wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown burst onto the scene in the second half of his rookie year and has been a standout player ever since. Defensive tackle Alim McNeill was a slow and steady contributor and played like a Pro Bowler this year. Even linebacker Derrick Barnes, who was challenged by the Lions by sending a first-round talent to his position in Jack Campbell, now looks like a solid NFL contributor.
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Melifonwu's time came in mid-December. The Lions were looking for a spark. They had moved CJ Gardner-Johnson to safety through a pectoral injury in Week 2, and his backup, Tracy Walker, didn't make the cut.
Before a Dec. 10 game against the Bears in Chicago, the Lions made a move hoping to get the most out of a defense that was beating some horses. Go out; Melifonwu in.
The Lions didn't win, but Melifonwu's early results were positive. He was a presence on the field. He played instinctively and freely, perhaps finally feeling comfortable in his new position. He deserves another start. And another one.
The sound you hear is Melifonwu starting to click.
His most recent performance was his best yet and earned him the win NFC Defensive Player of the Week Honors. He was tackled in coverage three times and allowed one catch. He became the first defensive back in franchise history to produce at least two sacks and record an interception in the same game. An interception that secured Detroit's first NFC North title. The department was created in 2002 from the former NFC Central.
“It means a lot,” Melifonwu said. “I love it when the defense is out there closing the ball down. The mentality is to put it in our hands.”
In his last two games, Melifonwu has played like a man ready to take the league by storm and lead the Lions (11-4) to new heights. His exit speed from the safety position, coupled with his size, make him an impactful, lightning-quick defensive back – something Glenn has taken advantage of. On two blitzes against the Denver Broncos last week, Melifonwu forced a fumble on a strip sack and recorded another pressure that led to a throwaway by Russell Wilson on third down. His jumping ability has allowed him to challenge on deep balls, and his newfound sense of security allows him to play faster and more instinctively than ever before.
The numbers paint the picture. Melifonwu is now the seventh-highest rated safety of the season by Pro Football Focus. In the last two games, he recorded 14 tackles (nine solo), five pressures, four pass breakups, four QB hits, three sacks, one forced fumble and one interception. He is the only defensive back since 1999 to produce four passes defensed, three sacks and one interception in two games. Game-changing football from a player who appeared out of nowhere.
“Just another outstanding performance,” Campbell said. “He is a factor. He's getting better and better. He's instinctive and you can see his athletic ability. He plays physically. He's getting better and better. I mean, he really is.”
Detroit's coaching staff will have some decisions to make when Gardner-Johnson returns, something Campbell alluded to Tuesday. Joseph appears to have found his groove again, recording two interceptions on Sunday. Despite some growing pains, Branch continues to shine as a newcomer. Melifonwu is almost indispensable at the moment. And Gardner-Johnson, who returned to practice last week for the first time since December, led the league in interceptions a year ago. That's essentially four guys fighting for three spots. As the postseason approaches, finding ways to get them all on the field is a good task.
To their credit, the Lions put this roster together for situations like the one that put Melifonwu in the starting lineup. When you're on the team, the coaching staff trusts you to contribute. This is not 2021. The Lions want to win and at the start of the year were looking for the top 53 to help them do that.
Melifonwu was one of those 53. Now he is helping them win.
(Photo: Matt Krohn / USA Today)
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