ALLEN PARK, Mich. — On the first day of training camp, Dan Campbell mentioned, as he has all offseason, that he wants the Detroit Lions to get back to where they were in 2021 and 2022.

The Lions missed the playoffs in both of those seasons, of course, so if you’re looking at things through that lens, you might be a bit confused by Campbell’s comments.

It might be worth asking a player who was around those seasons what things were like, and why the Lions want to get back.

“The way we practiced each and every day, the way we played, that chip that we had on our shoulder each and every game when we felt like we were the underdog every game, just getting back to that,” said wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, a fourth-round pick in 2021. “I think it’s not gonna be too hard for us to get back to that after what happened last year. I think we’re on our way there. We just gotta keep putting the work in each and every day. ”

Does this imply the Lions got away from what got them here? It’s easy to read it that way. Whether or not they would agree with that, they’re using this time to set the tone for the season ahead. So far, so good.

That and more from Day 2 of training camp.

Campbell isn’t sweating Jahmyr Gibbs’ absence

When Jahmyr Gibbs wasn’t spotted at practice yesterday, as rumors about his desire for a contract extension swirled, you knew Campbell was going to be asked about it this morning.

The coach did his best to alleviate concerns about his early absence.

“You guys know how I feel, how we feel about Gibbs and what the team feels about him, and I’ll leave it at that,” Campbell said. “Listen, all the other stuff — my job is to coach who’s out there right now, and I love the kid, but man, I’ve got a team to coach right now. And listen … at some point here, it’ll get done. It’s going to get done. I’m not even sweating it.”

Not that you expected anything else, but Campbell’s words, while indirect, point to perhaps this coming to an end sooner rather than later. Campbell said he thought the contract would have been done by now, but added he’s been in the league for a long time and knows how these things go, while reiterating that he’s not sweating the perceived hold-in.

Even though he hasn’t been practicing, Gibbs has been around the building. Campbell mentioned Gibbs is also dealing with a bit of a back issue after his conditioning test, which could be another reason for sitting out. But if this is contract-related, you’d hope Gibbs and the team can agree on a deal sooner rather than later, because you don’t want this to drag out too long.

In the meantime, Gibbs’ teammates aren’t sweating it either.

“He definitely wants to be out here,” running back Sione Vaki said. “That’s something he emphasized. This isn’t something he’d do. It’s just a business. He definitely wants to be with his teammates, man. He’s that kind of guy. So, anytime we get to see him, we’re just loving him up, telling him, ‘Do what you gotta do.’”

“He’s still in the building, he’s still at all the meetings and everything,” St. Brown said. “I think the players understand what’s going on. Everyone kind of gets it. It’s part of the business.”

Kerby Joseph speaks

The last time Joseph talked to local media, it was as somber a scrum as you’ll find. It was early December. Joseph had made several comeback attempts in practice but was never cleared. He said his knee was messed up. He said surgery wouldn’t help. And he said all he could do was keep the faith.

For the first time since those comments, Joseph spoke again, this time at training camp Thursday. His tone was far more optimistic, even if his answers were light on details. Joseph revealed that his walk with God began during those comeback attempts. He was baptized this spring and spoke about his faith several times Thursday.

“First and foremost, God is so good,” Joseph said. “Like, I love God with all my heart, and He has blessed me in so many different ways. And I’m just so thankful and so joyful just to even be here today, you know? So when I go out there and I work hard, I do it for him.”

Around this time a year ago, Joseph was held out of practice for what Campbell described as “knee irritation.” A year later, after a season in which he missed 11 games, Joseph is still dealing with the repercussions.

“I woke up, it was swollen,” Joseph recalled. “I ain’t think nothing much. I was just like, ‘I can still run, I can do all this, I’m finna go out there and practice.’ We had a scrimmage and I’m running, I’m like, ‘Man, I ain’t that fast today.’ … I got the MRI, got the news.”

Joseph tried to play through the knee issue, but with mixed results. His last game played was Week 6 versus the Chiefs. At the time, he was tied for second in the league with three interceptions, but he frequently left in the middle of games because of his knee. As of now, Joseph isn’t expected to be ready for the Lions’ opener against the Saints.

But later on?

“I’m super optimistic, man,” Joseph said. “I never gave up. I’m going to always work hard. All I do is work. If you see me outside, I’m working.”

The Lions and Joseph hope that the work — with a bit of faith and sprinkled in — will be enough to get him back on the field this season.

News, notes and observations

• Third-year offensive lineman Giovanni Manu had an injury before training camp that Campbell said was “not disclosed,” and it flared up on the first day of practice. Campbell didn’t say what the injury was, but Manu was added to the non-football injury list Wednesday evening after the team took a closer look. Per Campbell, Manu will miss 12-14 weeks — a major setback for a player fighting for a roster spot in Year 3. Campbell did not seem thrilled about how the situation unfolded.

• Edge rusher Payton Turner missed practice Thursday with a stiff back. “We don’t think that’ll be anything serious,” Campbell said.

• Offensive lineman Juice Scruggs continues to get first-team reps at left guard with Christian Mahogany on NFI. Ben Bartch continues to rest during team periods, which might be worth asking about this week to see if the Lions are taking it slow with the veteran guard.

• Campbell said he’s proud of the work second-year defensive tackle Tyleik Williams put in to lose weight this spring. “He came in, he noticed that he was a little bit heavy in the spring, came in two weeks before our program even started and was pretty heavy and said, ‘Hey, man, I want to get this right,’” Campbell said. “And I’ll tell you what, man, he’s a man of his word. Came in 325, made his weight, crushed the conditioning test. And like I told him, told the team and so now he’s put some money in the bank of trust.”

• Receiver Cedrick Wilson impressed with a one-handed snag down the right sideline from Teddy Bridgewater during the seven-on-seven period. Lions receivers coach Scottie Montgomery loved it. It was a well-placed ball lofted by Bridgewater, allowing Wilson to extend and make a play.

• During that same seven-on-seven period, receiver Jameson Williams caught a pass on an out route toward the right sideline where media was watching. He asked if we liked it before trotting back to the huddle. Admittedly, we did. His confidence is through the roof right now.

• Vaki is getting plenty of reps with the first-team offense. He said the hamstring injury that was nagging him a year ago is gone, and that he had never dealt with a lingering injury like that before. He’s working to stay more hydrated and has a plan in place to avoid another lengthy absence. With Gibbs out, Vaki is getting valuable snaps, and he stayed after practice to work on choice routes. He’s doing what he can to get better.

• Linebacker Derrick Barnes had an excellent day of practice. He broke up passes, intercepted Jared Goff and was as physical as you can be in shorts. One thing I’ve noticed: Barnes has been on the field as a Sam linebacker when the defense deploys its base look, then moves to Will in nickel, with Malcolm Rodriguez trotting off the field. It doesn’t look like Barnes will leave the field much. The Lions need him to have a strong season.

• Campbell on tight end Sam LaPorta, who is returning from November back surgery: “I know we’re not in pads, but this is full speed compared to what we were doing in the spring. And so now he’s ready to go. We just gave him a few reps, he’ll get a couple more today, a little bit more, we’ll back him back down tomorrow. But yeah, it’s pretty exciting. He feels pretty good. It’ll be great to get him back. He’s a big piece for our offense. He’s a weapon.”