Ameer Abdullah Clowns On Lions' Rookie Running Back
By: Will Burchfield
@burchie_kid
For Tion Green, it's all part of being a rookie.
And the 23-year-old doesn't seem to mind.
When asked about the video in which fellow running back Ameer Abdullah made fun of a sparse care package that Green received from his agent earlier this week, Green flashed a big smile, laughed and said, "Ohh, he got me, didn't he! He did, didn't he??"
The cardboard package, which looked big enough to hold several footballs, contained three small items: A white novelty mouthguard, a pair of yellow Under Armour gloves (Green wears Nike) and a roll of blue athletic tape.
It almost seemed like a prank.
Abdullah, standing right next to Green after Wednesday's practice, couldn't get enough.
"Who sent you that?" he asked. "Your mom? Your agent?"
Green, an undrafted rookie out of Cincinnati, clarified it was his agent.
A grinning Abdullah went on:
"I told him it was like his agent woke up sporadically one morning, like, 'Oh crap, I forgot to send Tion his package.' And he packs up the first thing he saw.
"So he probably went to Dicks Sporting Goods, got him some youth-league gloves, went to Dollar General, got him a mouthpiece, and then he went to Party City and picked him up some tape. He's like, 'This should take care of him for camp,'" Abdullah laughed.
Hold on now, said Green.
"There was a shirt to add to it," he pointed out. "It was like a 3-X shirt. 2-X?"
Said Abdullah, "Tion does not wear a 3-X or 2-X. It was a very poorly-structured box for a training camp package, if I do say."
The silver lining for Green was that Abdullah's video was posted on Twitter and Green's handle was included in the caption. Free publicity.
"Thanks to Ameer," he said, "I got a bunch of people DM-ing me trying to see my care package."
"I got him some followers," Abullah replied. "Hey, that's what it's about, bro. Any publicity is good publicity."
Green, a 230-pound bruiser, is battling Zach Zenner, Matt Asiata and Dwayne Washington for a spot behind Abdullah and Theo Riddick in Detroit's backfield. In his last two seasons at Cincinnati, Green averaged over 4.7 yards per carry and scored 10 touchdowns.
His new teammates seem to be enjoying his company.
"Tion is the life of the room right now," Abdullah said, "the life of the room. He's young, but he's a very confident young man."
