Category: Roster News

Lions activate Alim McNeill, C.J. Gardner-Johnson from I.R.

Lions activate Alim McNeill, C.J. Gardner-Johnson from I.R. for Week 18

The big man in the middle of the Detroit defensive line is back, and so is the instigator in the secondary.. Tackle Alim McNeill and Safety C.J Gardner-Johnson have been activated by the Lions in advance of the Week 18 regular season finale against the Minnesota Vikings.

McNeill had been on injured reserve for the minimum four weeks after suffering a knee injury. Head coach Dan Campbell noted that he expected McNeill to return this week, and the coach proved a man of his word.

The same is true with Gardner-Johnson, who has been out since Week 2. The verbose veteran is expected to have a part-time role in his return.

The Lions had two open roster spots from previous transactions, including waiving DT Isaiah Buggs and TE Anthony Firkser.

Detroit also elevated DT Tyson Alualu and FB Jason Cabinda from the practice squad for Sunday’s game against Minnesota. In addition, Firkser re-signed to the practice squad.

Lions waive TE Anthony Firkser, bring back DE to the practice squad

Lions waive TE Anthony Firkser, bring back DE to the practice squad

The Detroit Lions made another roster move on Thursday that indicates the team is ready to activate players from the injured reserve list. Alas, the Lions still haven’t officially activated anyone just yet.

Tight end Anthony Firkser was waived on Thursday. Firsker played just two offensive snaps in the last two games after being signed from the practice squad to replace injured Brock Wright. The veteran Firkser did play extensively on special teams.

Wright remains sidelined with a hip injury, but waiving Firsker is a sign that the Lions aren’t too concerned about not having their backup tight end for the Week 18 matchup with the Minnesota Vikings.

After also waiving Isaiah Buggs earlier in the week, the Lions now have two openings on the 53-man roster. Based on what head coach Dan Campbell indicated this week, those spots will be filled by DT Alim McNeill and DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson. They’re both eligible to be activated from the I.R. and have practiced this week.

The Lions did bring a defensive player back to the practice squad, too. EDGE Raymond Johnson is back after being released from the Lions’ practice squad earlier in the fall.

Lions re-sign FB Jason Cabinda to the practice squad

Lions re-sign FB Jason Cabinda to the practice squad and confirm that DT Isaiah Buggs has been waived

On Monday, Lions head coach Dan Campbell indicated the team was hopeful that Jason Cabinda would be rejoining them this week. Sure enough, Cabinda is back with the Lions.

On Tuesday, the veteran fullback re-signed with the Lions on the team’s practice squad. It’s the culmination of a strange few days for Cabinda.

Last Thursday, the Lions activated the fullback from the injured reserve list after he had fought hard to return from a knee injury. But on Friday, he was waived. Cabinda passed through waivers without being claimed, and the Lions snatched him back onto the practice squad.

In the same transaction note, the Lions officially waived defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs, who had earlier indicated his time in Detroit was done.

Lions waive freshly activated FB Jason Cabinda in a series of roster moves

Cabinda was activated from I.R. and then waived in a span of 24 hours

It’s been a weird 24 hours with the Detroit Lions on the NFL’s transaction wire. After making some moves on Thursday, primarily activating FB Jason Caibnda from the injured reserve, GM Brad Holmes and the Lions were busy on Friday.

Cabinda was waived on Friday in a surprising maneuver. Waiving Cabinda means he will not be eligible to rejoin the team in time for Saturday night’s game in Dallas.

Taking Cabinda’s spot on the 53-man roster is kicker Michael Badgley. That move was expected, with Badgley facing the final practice squad elevation for 2023 after being elevated the last two weeks. Detroit still has one other opening on the 53-man roster.

Also, the Lions shuffled the practice squad. The team released DL Chris Smith and brought back OL Michael Schofield to the practice squad.

Waiving Cabinda could be a move designed to protect other players at the bottom of the roster whom the Lions wish to keep. It’s unlikely any other team will claim Cabinda for a couple of reasons. First, few teams utilize a straight fullback like Cabinda; most already have their FB or use a hybrid TE or extra OL in the role, if needed. Secondly, Cabinda is coming off an injury and has bene sight unseen for any team that might be interested.

Lions activate FB Jason Cabinda, waive two defenders

Lions activate FB Jason Cabinda from I.R. and waive two defenders ahead of Week 17

Jason Cabinda is back on the Detroit Lion’s active roster. The team formally activated the veteran fullback from injured reserve on Thursday.

Cabinda has not played since getting injured in Week 3. He was designated to return from I.R. last week and will play against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday night. Fellow I.R. returnee designation C.J. Gardner-Johnson remains out for another week.

To make room for Cabinda, the Lions waived two young defensive players. Cornerback Chase Lucas and rookie linebacker Trevor Nowaske were each waived and are subject to waiver claims. If they clear waivers, the Lions can add them back to the practice squad.

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The second opening figures to go to kicker Michael Badgley, who is still on the practice squad. Badgley has already utilized two of his maximum three roster elevations, and the team has not worked out any kickers since making Badgley the starter in Week 15. The Lions will announce the practice squad elevations for the week prior to Saturday night’s game in Dallas.

Report: Lions waiving CB Chase Lucas

Lucas has played 6 snaps on defense in two seasons in Detroit

When a player comes back from injured reserve, it unfortunately means another player will need to be waived to make room. While we don’t yet know which player the Lions are activating from I.R., we do know who will be the victim of the requisite roster shuffling.

Per a report from Mike Garafolo that has been widely validated, the Lions are waiving CB Chase Lucas. The second-year cornerback has played exclusively on special teams in 2023 and saw just six defensive snaps as a seventh-round rookie in 2022.

Lucas was one of the obvious candidates for the Lions to cut to make room for returning players like C.J. Gardner-Johnson or Jason Cabinda. Both are eligible to be activated at any time.

Lions elevate two from practice squad to face the Vikings in Week 16

Lions elevate Michael Badgley and Anthony Firkser from the practice squad to face the Vikings in Week 16

In advance of Sunday’s matchup with the Vikings in Minnesota, the Detroit Lions have elevated two players from the practice squad to the active roster.

As expected, kicker Michael Badgley was promoted for the Week 16 game. It’s the second elevation in a row for Badgley, who beat out Riley Patterson in an in-season kicking competition. Players are allowed three elevations per season.

Tight end Anthony Firsker was also elevated. It’s the first elevation for the 6-year vet, who has not played yet in 2023. He will fill the role of reserve TE Brock Wright, who has been ruled out with an injury for the game after not practicing throughout the week.

The Lions did not elevate EDGE Bruce Irvin for the game. He will not play against Minnesota

Lions add CB Craig James to the practice squad

James is in his fifth NFL season and was last with the New York Jets

The practice squad deck got shuffled once again for the Detroit Lions. On Thursday, the Lions signed cornerback Craig James to the practice squad and released offensive lineman Michael Schofield to make room for James.

James, 27, had been on and off the New York Jets’ practice squad several times over the last two NFL seasons. He played in two games for New York in 2023, seeing action on 32 defensive snaps. The 5-foot-10 James is primarily a slot corner and does have over 300 special teams reps across five NFL seasons.

He’s also played for the Vikings and Eagles since joining Minnesota as an undrafted rookie from Southern Illinois in the 2018 season. James is not any relation to the former NFL running back of the same name.

Schofield had been on the Lions practice squad since mid-November. The 33-year-old did not get elevated for any games.

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Lions activate Hendon Hooker from the NFI list

Lions activate rookie QB Hendon Hooker from the NFI list and waive kicker Riley Patterson

The long road back to being on the football field has finally arrived at the desired endpoint for Lions quarterback Hendon Hooker. Detroit activated the rookie from the non-football injury (NFI) list on Tuesday.

Hooker had been designated to return nearly three weeks ago, and that activation came with one day left on the 21-day clock. Hooker has been recovering from a torn ACL suffered over a year ago while he was playing collegiately at Tennessee. He will be Detroit’s No. 3 quarterback behind Jared Goff and Teddy Bridgewater.

Activating Hooker allows him to be a full participant in practices and to be actively coached, neither of which were permitted while he was on the reserve list.

To make room on the roster, the Lions waived kicker Riley Patterson. He had lost the kicking gig to Michael Badgley.

Lions place DT Alim McNeill on I.R. in series of roster moves

McNeill is out for at least the next four games, and the Lion shuffled some practice squad players to help replace him

The Lions escaped New Orleans with a close victory, but Detroit lost one of its best defensive players in the win.

Defensive tackle Alim McNeill left the game on three separate instances and sought attention from trainers. It turned out to be worse than head coach Dan Campbell had hoped after the game. The Lions placed McNeill on the injured reserve list on Tuesday.

The team’s top interior player will miss the next four games at minimum, with just five regular-season games remaining.

The Lions filled McNeill’s spot on the 53-man roster by signing CB Kindle Vildor from the practice squad. As for the vacancy on the defensive line, Detroit officially added veteran Tyson Alualu to the practice squad. They also added offensive lineman Matt Farniok to the practice squad and released LB Raymond Johnson off the squad to make room.

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