Christian Mahogany, the Lions 6th-round-pick who mysteriously missed all of training camp and preseason, has confirmed that mononucleosis (mono) was the culprit.
Talked to Christian Mahogany. It was mono that kept him out for a few weeks. He’s feeling good now and focused on strength and cardio on his path back.
— Justin Rogers | Detroit Football Network (@Justin_Rogers) September 3, 2024
Mono is typically caused by the Epstein-Barr virus and studies have shown that over 90% of humans have contracted it at some point in their life. Most people likely contracted it as a child and developed some immunity, which would help prevent a more severe case later in life.
If an athlete is diagnosed with mono, the main concern is enlargement of the spleen (splenomegaly), which is found in about 50% of patients. The splenomegaly can lead to splenic rupture, which is rare but life-threatening. Avoiding contact sports and even heavy lifting for three to four weeks is thus recommended as usually the spleen returns to normal in that time.
In rare cases, the splenomegaly can persist beyond four weeks, which would necessitate a longer absence. Mahogany likely has had ultrasounds of his spleen to check for this issue. Presumably since he has resumed strength training, any significant splenomegaly has resolved.
OUTLOOK
There are unlikely to be any long-term issues for Mahogany due to mono. About 10% of individuals report persistent fatigue for months but this usually resolves over time. Some may experience lingering sore joints and that could affect performance.
Mahogany has been on the NFI (non-football injury) list since the start of camp and is remaining on NFI into the season. This means he is ineligible to play or even practice the first 4 weeks of the season. The earliest he is eligible to play is October 13 vs the Cowboys, after the bye.
Physically, there is a good chance he could play by the Cowboys game as that will have given him about six to eight weeks of training and conditioning. But since he is a rookie who has missed a significant amount of practice, it’s his mental game that might delay his return. Hopefully, we can see him take on a limited backup role at OG sometime in October.