Some quick thoughts after Lions rule out 4 starters for Thursday night matchup
Allen Park — It’s not the worst-case scenario for the Detroit Lions, but it's not great news, either. The team will be without four of five starters who entered the week of practice with injury concerns for Thursday night’s matchup against Green Bay.
For the most part, the final injury report was anticipated. On Wednesday, the team ruled out left tackle Taylor Decker and defensive linemen Josh Paschal, Levi Onwuzurike and DJ Reader. The silver lining: Cornerback Carlton Davis III is back after a one-game absence.
Coach Dan Campbell didn’t leave much to guesswork with the first three names on the above list. Decker didn’t practice this week and will miss his second straight game with the knee injury he suffered against Indianapolis after quarterback Jared Goff was driven into the back of his legs.
Decker will be replaced by Dan Skipper for the third time this season. For those who didn’t catch the exchange earlier in the week, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson told me he didn’t intend to flip Skipper and Penei Sewell in the lineup because there was hope Decker could get cleared late in the week.
The other component to Skipper playing on the left is the Packers typically line up their less reliable edge rushers to that side, Kingsley Enagbare and Brenton Cox Jr. That leaves Sewell to handle Rashan Gary.
As for Paschal and Onwuzurike, they’re also dealing with knee injuries after exiting in the first half of last Thursday’s Thanksgiving matchup with the Bears. Campbell never oversold the chance of either player suiting up this week, but their longer-term outlook remains optimistic.
Reader's condition was a bit more surprising. He briefly exited the Thanksgiving game after landing hard on his shoulder. He told me after the contest he was sore — humorously pointing out it’s a lot of weight when he lands on anything — but he expected to be fine. But, as we know, when the adrenaline wears off things can swell and feel worse before getting better. That’s a likely explanation here, but there’s no immediate concern this issue will result in a stint on injured reserve.
Regardless, it leaves the Lions short-handed along the defensive front, including the need for two new starters. One will almost certainly be Al-Quadin Muhammad, who got the call two other times before the Lions added Za’Darius Smith to the fold. What’s reassuring about Muhammad is he's coming off a dominant performance last week, where he generated seven pressures, recorded a sack and drew a hold.
In place of Reader, the Lions have choices. They can play it safe and go with veteran Pat O’Connor. He’s appeared in seven straight games since getting bumped up from the practice squad, but he hasn’t played more than nine defensive snaps in the past four games. Surprisingly, he’s never made a start during his seven-year career, but he's logged more than 30 snaps twice, including against Tennessee earlier this season.
Another alternative is thrusting 2023 third-round pick Brodric Martin into the starting lineup. It’s a big ask, but desperate times call for desperate measures. Plus, if there’s one thing Martin has in spades, it’s Reader-esque, space-eating size. Martin has only played 30 defensive snaps in his career, and just two this season after missing several weeks with a hyperextended knee. Still, he showed promising flashes during his second training camp.
The rotation up front will be rounded out by newcomers Jonah Williams and Myles Adams. Normally, you wouldn’t want to play a guy after just three practices, but the Lions don’t really have a choice.
Also, expect the team to use at least one of its practice squad elevations on a defensive lineman. That could be an interior option like Chris Smith or an edge such as Isaac Ukwu, Isaiah Thomas or Mitchell Agude. With Williams and Adams both having inside-out flexibility, the Lions can go with whoever has been practicing at the highest level in recent weeks.
Speaking of elevations, expect three practice squaders to get the call for Thursday, with one landing on the 53-man roster. The Lions cleared an extra spot on Wednesday, releasing undrafted rookie safety Loren Strickland.
My guesses for the elevations: Return man Maurice Alexander, safety/linebacker Jamal Adams, and one of those defensive linemen, with a slight lean toward Chris Smith. Veteran offensive tackle Jamarco Jones is also in play. He’s been the team’s preferred backup, over Colby Sorsdal, for the previous two games Decker missed.
The evolution of Detroit’s linebacker rotation will be fascinating with Malcolm Rodriguez done for the season. Jack Campbell is the constant, and I’d imagine David Long and Ezekiel Turner will share a lot of Rodriguez’s reps initially, with Long the likelier early-down option.
Newcomer Kwon Alexander should also see reps in base packages with the potential for rapid playing time expansion down the stretch. As for Jamal Adams, I wouldn't expect many snaps this week if he gets the call from the practice squad, with his most likely usage as an extra rusher in obvious passing situations.
As for the Packers, they’re not without some of their own injury concerns. No. 1 cornerback Jaire Alexander will miss his third straight game with a knee injury, while rookie linebacker Edgerrin Cooper, who has been playing about half of the team’s defensive snaps, will miss his second in a row with a strained hamstring.
On offense, Green Bay will be without receiver Romeo Doubs, who is still recovering from a concussion. That means more playing time for speedy Dontayvion Wicks on Thursday. He didn't catch any of his three targets in the Week 9 game against Detroit.
I see Reader as the big blow here defensively, since Josh Jacobs has become such a huge part of the Green Bay offense. Doubs being out helps, because maybe we can commit more to stopping the run. But yikes... let's go offense!
As I understand it, during the magical run of the Patriots dominant era,the one thing that was emphasized by Belichick was "just do your job". I would imagine they had their own fair share of injuries to deal with but the record speaks for itself. I'm thinking that 99.999% of the guys on the roster will give it everything they got to "just do your job". The rest will take care of itself. Coach Campbell brings out the best in his guys week in and week out.