ALLEN PARK, Mich. — On the last real day of training camp, just before the start of the regular season, Dan Campbell made sure his starting players got the much-needed work they otherwise wouldn’t have gotten during the preseason. It was practice day.

“Today is kind of the last big practice before we get ready for Pittsburgh this weekend,” Campbell said Wednesday. “We’re going to do a lot of one-on-one practice, offense versus defense, and in between we’re going to do two-man practice. …We’re going to play offense first and then defense and then have special teams in between, so it’s going to be good.”

It’s been a good summer for the team, which is looking to defend its title as NFC North champions and win its first Super Bowl. What began in the spring and continued into August is now coming to an end. This was the last opportunity for the media to watch practice in detail before we’re limited to about 15-20 minutes of warmups and individual periods at the start of the regular season. But until then, the Lions tested where they stand with one final practice game.

This is what we saw.

Summary of the training game

This was by far the longest and most extensive practice game of the summer for the Lions, who participated in live tackles in full gear to prepare for Week 1. It was the most game-like we’ve ever seen for the starters, as the No. 1 offense went up against the No. 1 defense exclusively – with two- and three-man teams in between — almost two hours long. Here is a summary of the first team matches, series by series.

First series: Three and out for the offense. A six-yard run for David Montgomery, then a drop for Brock Wright and an incomplete pass to Kalif Raymond deep down the field.

Second series: The highlight was a 19-yard pass from Goff to St. Brown, but the rest of the offense was quickly brought under control by the defense. Alim McNeill scored a TFL and a sack on two consecutive plays to end the offense.

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Third series: A pick-six on a pass intended for Montgomery, courtesy of Carlton Davis III. Both the first offense and defense stayed on the field to return the ball, as the interception came on the first play of the series.

Fourth series: Completions from Kalif Raymond and St. Brown helped the Lions get into the red zone, but the offense couldn’t finish. On third-and-9 from the 13, Aidan Hutchinson deflected a pass intended for St. Brown. That led to a 31-yard field goal for Jake Bates. The kick was good.

Fifth series: Three-and-out after a deep, incomplete pass to Jameson Williams. Disastrous drive. Not good.

Sixth series: A 19-yard pass from Goff to Williams was the highlight of the offense, but the attack stalled when Kindle Vildor missed a sideline throw to St. Brown for a loss of five yards. On the next play, Alex Anzalone deflected and intercepted a pass intended for Williams.

Seventh series: Finally, one more positive aspect for the offense. St. Brown managed a 55-yard gain and pushed the Lions deep into defense, and after a few goal line stops, Goff found Parker Hesse, who scored the offense’s first touchdown of the practice game.

Eighth series: The drive began at the 50. The offense moved in fits and starts, but Brian Branch ended it with a sack. Jake Bates made a 24-yard field goal.

**HALF TIME**

Ninth series: Another point for the first offense when Goff found Raymond on fourth down at the 2-yard line for a touchdown. The tight ends did most of the damage here, highlighted by a 22-yard gain by Wright and a 19-yard receiver by Shane Zylstra on the series.

10th series: Another point after a 13-play drive. The offense had to work hard to get there, but they managed to force a first-and-goal and finish the drive with a touchdown for Wright.

11th series: Fourth quarter. Last series of the day, one point was needed to take the lead. Goff threw Williams too far with a deep ball. Then Goff was sacked by Hutchinson. Then a pressure from Alex Anzalone led to an incomplete pass. And finally, on fourth and 18, Goff’s pass to St. Brown did not bring the first — Stopped far forward. Good defensive position.

Findings: After a miserable start for the offense, the second half of the day was much, much better. It should be noted that the first-team offense was down several starters (Kevin Zeitler, Jahmyr Gibbs, Sam LaPorta), but the defense held up well and let the offense take advantage of everything it got. This unit is confident it can compete with offenses across the league. We’ll find out soon enough.

Penei Sewell left practice with a foot injury. Brian Branch said he didn’t think it was serious. (Junfu Han / USA Today)

News, notes and observations

• Lions RT Penei Sewell left practice on Wednesday and did not return. It was difficult to say what happened, but Sewell remained on the ground after the game. He got up after about a minute and limped off the field without help. Trainers took off his cleats and appeared to look at his ankle. The Lions are officially calling it a foot injury. The next media appearance will be on Saturday after the final game of the season against the Steelers. Branch said he does not believe it is that serious.

• RB Craig Reynolds also left practice and did not return. The team calls it a “lower body injury.”

• Aiden Hutchinson had two pass deflections and a sack during the practice game. Alim McNeill had a sack and multiple TFLs. They will solidify Detroit’s defensive line.

• Kingsley Eguakun has played at right guard on the first team the past two days, replacing Kevin Zeitler. He is fighting for a spot on the roster, likely competing with Michael Niese and Kayode Awosika. However, it wasn’t his best day. That will change when he faces McNeill.

• Kyle Peko played most – if not all – of his snaps with the first-team defense. He’s a surefire candidate to make the roster at this point. The Lions could have one of the best interior defensive lines in the league if Reader returns and if Levi Onwuzurike is the player they hyped him up to be. They’ve been excellent all summer.

• Carlton Davis III intercepted a pass intended for David Montgomery for a touchdown. Really nice play by the veteran cornerback, even though he later left practice (but stayed on the sidelines in protective gear).

• Kindle Vildor started at fullback opposite Davis III with Terrion Arnold still out. He had a good streak last week. With the final cornerback spot between Vildor and Khalil Dorsey, it will be a tough decision.

• When the Lions had 11 players, the first receiver with Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams was usually Kalif Raymond. No surprise. He’s the third-best receiver on the roster right now and he made some good plays on Wednesday.

• Donovan Peoples-Jones was occasionally inserted into the first team offensive line during practice games. He caught a few balls and didn’t drop one well. That’s common for him, but still a good sign.

• Brian Branch is ready for the safety. During a goal line handoff to David Montgomery, Branch rushed in for a TFL and blew the play open. Getting Montgomery on the ground is no easy task. For Branch, it was.

• Hendon Hooker and G/C Michael Niese had some issues on various snap exchanges. There were at least two fumbles off the snap. They were seen doing extra work on the side once the first offense was back in the game.

• Receivers who worked with the second team offense: Peoples-Jones, Daurice Fountain, Kaden Davis and Tom Kennedy. Isaiah Williams was not particularly involved.

• Jake Bates made 4 of 5 PATs and 2 of 3 field goal attempts. It looked like the missed PAT was the result of a bad snap. The missed field goal attempt came from 48 yards out. Wide right.

(Top photo of Ty Summers, left, and Joel Iyiegbuniwe: Carlos Osorio / AP Photo)