ALLEN PARK -- Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford was up and down on his first day of work against the New England Patriots, as you might expect. This was his first opportunity to work against a defense that wasn’t his own, after all, and it came against one of the best secondaries in the league at that.

On Day 2, Stafford struck back.

And like so much of camp, he seemed to be at his best when targeting his tight ends -- and T.J. Hockenson in particular.

In their first one-on-one rep, Hockenson separated from Devin McCourty on an out route and Stafford rifled a strike to him just as he was emerging from his break. Correct me if I’m wrong, but that route and throw seem like an indefensible play, at least in man coverage.

Duron Harmon’s solution was to rough up Hockenson on his next rep, and even drew a flag for it -- yet Hockenson ran a perfect flag route anyway, separated from the coverage and caught a dart from Stafford for a huge gain.

Hockenson nearly caught a touchdown during seven-on-sevens in the red zone, when he fought through another penalty to climb the ladder for the catch. But officials ruled he landed on the back line of the end zone.

Detroit and New England wrapped up practice with 2-minute drills, this time giving the offenses the ball at the 43-yard line with 40 seconds left and down by four points. It mirrored a drill from Monday where the Lions needed a sack to be waved off for them to even get off a field goal. A day later, though, the whole operation looked much tighter.

Stafford began the series by nailing Danny Amendola for about 9 yards, then clocking the ball. On third down, he hit Amendola again to move the chains. After a really nice throw-and-catch with Andy Jones along the left sideline, Detroit had two shots at the end zone from the 13-yard line with 7 seconds left.

They would need only one of them.

Hockenson -- who else? -- ran a skinny post on the next play, and Stafford put the ball where only his big rookie could get it for a 13-yard go-ahead score with 2 seconds left. That was a surgical drive, capped by a surgical throw to a rookie tight end who continues to impress. And it came against one of the better defenses and best secondaries in the league.

Stafford hasn’t been bad in camp, but he’s missed more throws than I’m used to seeing in situational drills and especially downfield. But he was much better Tuesday than he was Monday, and that’s the point of these joint practices, isn’t it? To get better. And there’s little doubt Stafford and the offense did just that.

Here are some more observations from practice:

-- Stafford did find other players not named Hockenson, in case you were wondering. Opening seven-on-sevens from the 10-yard line, he threw two straight touchdown passes to Kenny Golladay -- with Stephon Gillmore in coverage both times, by the way, one of the very best corners in the league. But Stafford’s best throw of the day might have been the dime he dropped on Jermaine Kearse from 50 yards out during team work. There was also a flag thrown for holding against a Lions offensive lineman on the play (didn’t catch who was guilty for it), so it’s not like it was all gravy. But after a camp filled with misfires downfield, it was encouraging to see Stafford connect a few times today.

Stafford also hit Amendola for a nice touchdown catch along the boundary in the end zone. Every day, I have been impressed with Amendola’s fitness. This guy is “old” by NFL receiver standards, by man is he flying around all over the place. He said earlier in the offseason he believes he’s the fastest he’s ever been in his career, and while I haven’t seen him for his whole career, I don’t doubt it.

-- For the second straight day, fullback Nick Bawden’s pass-catching stood out. Or maybe it’s his route-running, to be more specific. During one-on-ones, he swatted away a jam attempt by Brandon King and caught an easy touchdown pass. He beat Yodny Cajuste on his next rep, then did it again on his third. Bawden just seems to do a really good job of setting up his man, then coming out of his break hard to create separation. And I’ve really liked what I’ve seen from him on curl routes around the goal line. As long as Bawden can carve out a niche on special teams, I think he should have very little trouble making this roster.

-- I haven’t been able to see much of the one-on-one drills between linemen this week because of when and where those have gone down (media must remain in a particular bleacher on the south side of the field), but got a close look at Detroit’s offensive line working against New England’s defensive line on Tuesday. Frank Ragnow was especially impressive, disposing of Danny Shelton and Mike Pennel Jr. with ease. He looks right at home at center, and it’s easy to see why Detroit was so interested in moving him back to his college position.

It was a mixed bag for Taylor Decker, who beat Derek Rivers on his first rep but allowed former Michigan star Chase Winovich to blow by him on his second rep. There were some cheers from the crowd on that one too, with plenty of Wolverines fans on hand to get a closer look at Winovich, and possibly that Tom Brady guy too.

By the way: I know the Lions paid Ryan Pope a lot of money to join them as an undrafted rookie, but Pope is really struggling right now. If he’s won any reps against New England this week, I didn’t see it. After losing a couple more reps today, he put his hands on his helmet and began shaking it. Clearly, he’s frustrated.

-- Jamal Agnew worked as the first-team kick returner, followed by Ty Johnson, who continues to show some interesting versatility in camp. The sixth-round pick brought the ball out to about the 35- or 40-yard line, the best return I saw today. Brandon Powell also got a rep.

-- The Lions like to get in extra work for their young players at the end of practice, and it seems the Patriots do too, because both clubs let the young fellas get in an extra round of team work at the end of practice. But it took a bad turn for Detroit today, with Powell going down with an injury during that final period. Trainers appeared to be looking at his knee. Powell did walk off the field on his own power, which is an encouraging sign, but it remains to be seen whether he’ll be available to play in the preseason opener in two days. Exhibitions don’t matter for so many players, but they absolutely do for a young guy like Powell, who is squarely on the bubble in that deep receiver room.

After a really solid week of practice, Jermaine Kearse has surged in that competition for the fourth receiver job. Sixth-round pick Travis Fulgham is in the mix, along with Andy Jones, a terrific blocker and special teams player. Powell certainly has a chance too, because of his ability to return punts and kicks, and Detroit has been toying with him in different looks on offense, seeing what he might be capable of doing in the post-Theo Riddick world. But it’s going to be a tight squeeze onto the roster, so any kind of setback -- especially one that costs him 25% of the preseason -- could hurt Powell’s chances.

-- I haven’t written “44” into my notebook often in camp, but Jalen Reeves-Maybin did get the best of Tom Brady a couple times today. That includes breaking up a pass into the end zone during seven-on-sevens, then intercepting the next one. He also was in the vicinity of a blocked punt, although it was unclear to me whether he got a hand on the ball, or if it was rookie receiver Jonathan Duhart. Either way, it was a nice day for Reeves-Maybin.

-- Another number I haven’t scribbled much is “1,” as in the rookie Duhart, but he flashed a couple times today, including on that punt block as well as hauling in a touchdown catch during seven-on-sevens.

-- You know what number I have jotted down a time or two? That’d be “35,” as in Miles Killebrew. The dude didn’t play a lick of defense last year, but has done enough in camp to earn a crack with the ones against New England. He even had a sack and pass breakup against Tom Brady. I don’t think he’s pushing for regular playing time or anything, but it’s good to see a guy overcome some adversity and put himself in play for subpackage work and a reserve role.

-- Jarrad Davis didn’t miss a practice all last season. But he’s missed the last two days against New England with an injury that seems to be minor. Davis probably won’t play in the preseason opener, but concern for him is at a minimum.

“As far as J.D., something that just came up in practice the other day and we’re just trying to make sure that we do a good job with it," coach Matt Patricia said. "As soon as he can get back out there, he’ll be out there.”

Detroit’s defense continued to be short handed without the likes of Trey Flowers and Snacks Harrison, who have missed the entire first two weeks of training camp. Da’Shawn Hand missed another practice, and added a new layer of protection to that injured arm as he watched from the sidelines. Teez Tabor and Austin Bryant were out too, while new injuries included linebacker Garret Dooley and rookie defensive tackle Ray Smith.

-- I’ve gotten a few questions about Justin Coleman, the high-priced cornerback signed by Detroit this offseason. So allow me to say this: Haven’t written about him much, because he hasn’t done much. He did have a pass breakup today, but also appeared to be beat by Braxton Berrios for a touchdown shortly after that. It’s important to remember he missed the offseason program with an injury, and could still be shaking off rust.

-- OK, but seriously, who put on Creed at practice today?