Second-year Detroit Lions defensive tackle Brodric Martin is starting to pick up the ropes of the NFL as he experiences the peaks and valleys of trying to get better.

Martin barely played as a rookie out of Western Kentucky, appearing on 28 defensive snaps spread between three games, and was a healthy scratch for the final three games of the regular season and three playoff games. Martin's development was planned from draft night, though.

The Lions knew he was a project, and now entering his second NFL season, there have been some of the successes and failures you'd expect to see in a camp that head coach Dan Campbell described as "pivotal" in the spring.

On Tuesday, Campbell said Martin has shown some progress in some fundamental areas, but it hasn't been linear in implementing everything the coaches are looking for from a plug-stuffer at nose tackle.

"I would say it’s been up and down," Campbell said. "Some of these things we’ve talked about Brodric cleaning up a little bit, it is staying more square. You’re starting to see it, then once it gets square, now (he) forgets to power because he’s so focused on being square then he loses some of his anchor, his footwork gets out of whack. So, it’s a work in progress and it’s up and down right now but the kid is working at it and (defensive line coach) Terrell (Williams) is on him, and I would anticipate that he’s going to continue to grow."

Martin said in the spring he could see the steps he took as a rookie going up against Detroit's offensive line; and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said he reshaped his body to fit for the NFL. In training camp, Martin has played at defensive tackle and has taken snaps alongside nearly every other interior player, including starting Wednesday's practice next to Alim McNeill on the inside during team walkthroughs, with Aidan Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport flanking them, before a quick rotation to new bodies.

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The desired tweaks are an everyday focus for Martin, who said his goal for 2024 was to "be starring in his role" on the defense, wherever that may end up. The focus is on having consistent power, hand placement, anchoring and learning how to find those solutions in real time.

"It's vital," Martin said. "I need to have it. I need to work on it every single day because I'm not in a position where it just happens, I gotta work at it. I gotta work at it every single day. I gotta mentally know that I need to stay low, stay square, put my hands in chests. That's what I think about before the play. It's just taking time, naturally doing it and working."

Thinking about the fundamentals isn't taxing or annoying, Martin said. Rather, it's just another step in the process all NFL players go through at some point in the early stages of their careers.

"Of course it's challenging, but everybody has got to do it at some point," Martin said. "Even the best in the league had to make sure their hands are right, feet are right before, so it's just part of it, man. It's not really a big thing, you just got to know how to do it."

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He has had a chance to play with most his defensive teammates against all levels of the offense on the interior, aided by the absence of D.J. Reader, the nose tackle the Lions signed in free agency. Reader remains on the Physically Unable to Perform list as he recovers from a torn quad.

Although Reader cannot practice, he is still present and has spent time after talking with defensive linemen as they work on pass rush moves or get extra sprints in on the hill. Martin said having Reader, along with Davenport, has helped him with the learning process.

"I feel like having them is like having a second coach," Martin said. "Especially D.J. playing nose (tackle). Having him, having somebody that I can go to that is in the same position as me. I can go to him and ask him about how he would play this block or what he would do right here and all that — just like having a second coach."

The confidence of knowing he belongs in the league now is evident to the veteran members of the Lions' defensive line room, who are helping him work on those fundamentals since he understands his role better now.

"A lot more confidence in knowing what he's doing within the scheme," McNeill said. "That was kind of a big thing. When you know what you're doing, you can play a lot faster, you don't have to think about things. So just him knowing his game, he knows what he has to do know so he doesn't have to think about it, just work on his technique."

Each member of the defensive line, Martin included, has praised Williams' work and desired mentality of aggression as the new position coach. The veteran line coach has the players playing looser, Hutchinson said, and more aggressive in attacking downhill towards the ball.

"(Williams) means the world to me," Martin said. "He really brought me in and he sat me down and told me exactly what I need to do and how I need to do it. He's been coaching me and ... he's probably one of the best coaches I've ever had on the D-line."

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions' Brodric Martin knows where he has to improve to play