Band-Aid Off: Cade Mays Is the Lions' Center Against Green Bay

Lions fans, the center debate is over, and Dan Campbell settled it in plain English.

Speaking on 97.1 The Ticket on Wednesday, Campbell made it clear Cade Mays is in line to start at center Sunday against Green Bay. "We really worked the heck out of Cade yesterday. He got some quality reps, and we would like to give him a go here," Campbell said, per Pride of Detroit. "We'd like to just rip this Band-Aid off of Cade."

Mays signed a three-year, $25 million deal this offseason to be the guy in the middle, then fractured his wrist in training camp. Juice Scruggs held down the job for the first five games, and Campbell made sure he got his flowers: "Juice has done a hell of a job for us. Thank goodness we got Juice, man. He's been outstanding for us."

Don't expect a rotation, either. Campbell said a center is "totally different" from a guard: "That guy's touching the ball. The snap count is different. Everything: the snap, the timing, the calls, the quarterback's comfort with one guy over and over."

Update, Thursday: Mays won't be the only one back. "Barring anything negatively happening between now and the game, we plan on playing both of those guys," Campbell said of Mays and Brian Branch, per ESPN. Branch, back from the torn Achilles he suffered last December against Dallas, and Mays were both listed as full participants on the team's first Packers-week practice report, per DetroitLions.com. Campbell said Branch won't be asked to play 70 snaps in his first game back, but the team believes he can handle quite a bit.

Our Take: This is the right call. Detroit paid Mays to be the center, and you don't find out what you bought by easing him in. Keeping Scruggs ready as the top backup and in the mix at left guard means the depth just got better, not thinner.

What to watch: the snap exchange and the line calls early Sunday in a loud building against a Packers front that's trending up. If Mays is clean in the first quarter, this line gets back to being a strength.

Sources: ESPN, DetroitLions.com, Pride of Detroit, A to Z Sports