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Lions defensive tackle Gabe Wright, right, chats with defensive end Kerry Hyder during rookie minicamp.

(Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)

ALLEN PARK -- Former Central Michigan tight end Deon Butler caught a pass during Detroit Lions minicamp on Saturday, and found himself streaking through the open field.

Then he was hunted down from behind by a defensive lineman.

It was, of course, No. 90. The Detroit Lions train their defensive linemen to pursue ball-carriers and pass-catchers into the second and third levels, and no one was better at pulling that off than Ndamukong Suh.

Suh is long gone now, but rookie Gabe Wright -- wearing Suh's old No. 90 -- seems to be carrying on the tradition.

"He ran about 100,000 yards down the field," Wright said, "but I caught him."

The Lions entered last week's draft needing a defensive tackle, following the loss of Suh and Nick Fairley in free agency. And when they went in other directions on the first two days, they traded up to select Wright in the fourth round.

Like first-rounder Laken Tomlinson and second-rounder Ameer Abdullah, Wright is burdened with the expectation to contribute immediately. He and Caraun Reid should be the primary reserves behind Haloti Ngata and Tyrunn Walker.

"We think he is going to be productive for us when we get him in here and get him in the rotation for us," defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said. "We are hoping, like most of our defensive tackles, to get him 25, 30, 35 plays a game."

There will be some natural comparisons drawn to Suh, because of the number he is wearing. And he's not intimidated by those comparisons, at all, which is why he felt comfortable wearing the No. 90.

"Absolutely not," Wright said. "It's actually something I haven't even really thought about since being here."

Wright, after all, has other things on his mind these days at rookie minicamp.

Coach Jim Caldwell uses rookie minicamp to throw as much information as possible at players, and see what sticks. Wright said he nearly filled his notebook after just two days.

He said parts of meetings have included film cut-ups of "effort plays" from last season.

"There were plenty of times where the defensive ends and defensive tackles were running 40 yards down the field," Wright said. "I think part of that is just the mentality of the Detroit Lions defense. And I think that's something we're learning."

Sixth-round pick Quandre Diggs has known Wright since they played in the Under Armour All-American Game together back in 2011. They've stayed in contact over the years, and Wright congratulated Diggs on his selection via Snapchat during the draft.

And Diggs says high-effort plays are the norm for Wright.

"He's going to go out and compete," Diggs said. "He's one of those big guys that loves to hustle. He loves to make plays, and he plays the game with the type of excitement that you love to see from those big guys."

Wright certainly showed that while chasing down a tight end from behind, much like Suh used to do. But he's not concerned about the man he's helping to replace.

"If I can be the best Gabe I can be," he said, "I think that will take care of itself."

Detroit Lions 2015 rookie mini-camp - May 9, 2015 30 Gallery: Detroit Lions 2015 rookie mini-camp - May 9, 2015

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