When the Detroit Lions moved training camp from Saginaw Valley State to their Allen Park practice facility in 2002, they were among a small minority of teams who chose not to go away for the start of practice.
In the past 15 years, teams across the league – buoyed by having bigger and more state-of-the-art facilities – have discovered a new appetite for hosting camp on their own.
The Lions, who expanded their practice facility to include three outdoor fields this off-season, are one of 21 teams keeping camp at home this summer, more than double the number from 2002 (10) and tied for the most since the turn of the millennium.