Meet Brad Holmes' lieutenant who has helped Lions patchwork roster through unprecedented injury woes in 2024
Allen Park — After the Detroit Lions beat the Bears in Chicago late last month, pro personnel director Rob Lohman waited for the frustrating but familiar text. The one that, in many ways, has defined Detroit’s 2024 season.
But the communication from the team’s locker room never came.
Anxious it might have been sent, only to get chewed up and spit out by the concrete bowels of Solider Field — landing wherever it is all lost texts go — Lohman couldn’t wait any longer, opting to make first contact.
"Does this mean there're no injuries?" he sent.
It’s difficult to read skepticism or cautious optimism in that single line without context, but rest assured, both were woven into the message. With nearly two dozen players on injured reserve, including more than half the team’s starting defense, Lohman has grown as accustomed to bad news emanating from the training room as much as anyone.
This week would offer a welcomed reprieve from the routine of trying to find another player outside the walls of team’s practice facility to urgently fill a void. But Lohman was ready because it’s his job to be.