Detroit Lions training camp: Why rookie WR Travis Fulgham is last off practice field

A good 45 minutes or so after practice ended Sunday, Travis Fulgham finally ran his last route.

“Just trying to get some extra work," Fulgham said. "Being able to practice, there’s not enough reps to learn everything so just making sure you get a good day’s amount of work so you’re ready for the next day."

A sixth-round pick out of Old Dominion, Fulgham said he's been in the habit of staying after practice to catch extra passes since high school.

On Sunday, he was the last Lions player to leave the field, catching balls from character coach Dylan Thompson, a former quarterback at South Carolina, while most of his teammates had already hit the showers or headed to lunch.

Fulgham said he wasn't working on anything in particular, "just fine-tuning my routes."

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"Just making sure they’re crisp," he said. "Making sure I can work the DBs in the way I want to, getting the right leverage."

Four days into training camp, Fulgham has spent most of his time working with the second- and third-team offense.

He led Conference USA with 1,083 yards receiving on 63 catches last season, and is competing with Jermaine Kearse, Andy Jones and Brandon Powell, among others, for one or two backups job with the Lions.

The Lions return Marvin Jones and Kenny Golladay as their starting receivers, and signed Danny Amendola this offseason to play in the slot..

"I just want to make everything perfect after practice," Fulgham said. "It doesn’t matter how many (reps I get), just make sure they’re good reps."

Briefly

Running back Kerryon Johnson returned to practice Sunday after missing Saturday's workout for personal reasons. Linebackers Christian Jones and Devon Kennard did not practice Sunday because of injuries. ... Rookie defensive lineman Ray Smith changed numbers from 96 to 61 to accommodate Mike Daniels. Daniels wore No. 76 in Green Bay, the number worn by offensive guard Oday Aboushi in Detroit.

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Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett. Read more on the Detroit Lions and sign up for our Lions newsletter.