Saturday’s practice session at the Detroit Lions training facility in Allen Park saw nearly a full house of participants on the field. Only one Lions player was not spotted in action in the period of practice open to reporters.
Nose tackle Isaiah Buggs did not practice in the rare Saturday session, a timing necessitated by the Thursday night opener in Kansas City. Buggs was not mentioned with any injury beyond a below-the-belt shot he took in the preseason finale against the Carolina Panthers. While he did not return to that game eight days before Saturday’s practice, he’s not shown any signs of lingering issues.
The Lions have some depth behind Buggs in Benito Jones and third-round rookie Brodric Martin as interior space-eaters. Neither offers the play-to-play consistency or run-gap responsibility of Buggs, however.
On a positive front, Ifeatu Melifonwu was on the field. The oft-injured DB missed the preseason finale and had sat out recent practices with a left thigh/quad issue.
The first official injury report comes out on Monday.