Lions officially tender James Houston among several transactions

Lions officially tender James Houston among several transactions to start the new NFL league year

The start of the new NFL league year commenced at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday. The flip to 2024 means transactions that had been pending and long-reported are now able to be made official.

Such was the case for the Detroit Lions with a few deals that had been in the works. Among those were the qualifying tender offers for restricted and exclusive rights free agents on the roster.

MOst of these were already known, but the Lions made it official. They extended qualifying offers to just one of the six eligible restricted free agents. Tight end Brock Wright will be back in Detroit for $2.9 million.

The following restricted free agents are now on the open market and no longer under contractual control or compensation ties to the Lions:

  • CB Jerry Jacobs
  • CB Chase Lucas
  • LB Anthony Pittman
  • LS Scott Daly
  • DT Benito Jones
  • CB Khalil Dorsey

For exclusive rights free agents, or ERFAs, the Lions officially tendered five of the six eligible players. Most notable is EDGE James Houston, whose status had been kept quiet by all parties. Houston will play for the NFL league minimum for the Lions in 2024 and will become a restricted free agent following the season if he’s on the roster in some form for at least six games.

The trade for Carlton Davis and recent re-signings of RB Zonovan Knight, CB Emmanuel Moseley and TE Shane Zylstra were also made official on the league’s transaction wire.

Report: Lions won’t make a tender offer to CB Jerry Jacobs

Report: Lions won’t make a tender offer to CB Jerry Jacobs, making him an unrestricted free agent

With free agency coming very soon, the Detroit Lions have made a decision not to keep one of their own. According to a report from ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Lions will not make a contract tender offer to restricted free agent cornerback Jerry Jacobs

The report comes a day after Jacobs posted a cryptic message on his social media that indicated some change was on the way.

Jacobs started 29 games over the last three seasons at outside CB after making the team as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Arkansas. He started 12 games in 2023 before suffering a knee injury.

He did not play well in 2023, giving up a completion rate over 66 percent and surrendering seven touchdowns, per PFF’s tracking. His tackling and run defense also regressed from his first two years.

As a restricted free agent, the Lions simply needed to extend a qualifying contract offer to Jacobs. That would have allowed the team to match any offer from an opposing team and get compensation in return if Jacobs left. Now, he is an unrestricted free agent and the Lions get nothing in return if he signs elsewhere.

Lions re-sign two from the practice squad in playoff roster moves

Lions re-sign two from the practice squad, place two others on I.R. in playoff roster moves

The day before a Detroit Lions game is always full of some roster tweaking. That’s true with the Lions in the postseason too.

A day ahead of Detroit’s first-ever playoff game in Ford Field, the Lions made some moves to handle some injury situations on the active roster.

Two players were placed on injured reserve, as expected. Cornerback Jerry Jacobs and tight end James Mitchell were both already ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Rams with injuries.

The Lions signed two players from the practice squad to replace them on the 53-man active roster. Both CB Chase Lucas and TE Anthony Firkser had been on the Lions’ active roster earlier in the season but had been waived and then added back to the practice squad.

Detroit also elevated DT Tyson Alualu and fullback Jason Cabinda from the practice squad for the wild card game.

Lions final injury report for wild card weekend

Lions final injury report for wild card weekend: Sam LaPorta questionable for matchup with the Rams

The final Detroit Lions injury report for wild card weekend is one featuring two surprises at the tight end position. One of them is positive, while the other is an unfortunate development.

The good news: rookie Sam LaPorta is listed as questionable. The rookie tight end is making excellent progress from a knee injury that saw LaPorta leave the field on a cart in the Week 18 win over the Vikings. He participated fully in Friday’s practice.

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On the bad news side, James Mitchell has been ruled out with a hand injury. Mitchell went from full participant on Wednesday to limited on Thursday and then no practice on Friday.

Two other players were ruled out. Cornerback Jerry Jacobs (thigh/knee) and wide receiver Kalif Raymond (knee) will not play. Jacobs is expected to head to the injured reserve list on Saturday, when coach Dan Campbell indicated the team will make transactions.

One of those transactions was expected to be the activation of EDGE James Houston from the injured reserve. Houston is currently listed as out, however.

The only other player with an injury designation is defensive lineman John Cominsky.  No. 79 is questionable with an undisclosed illness. Cominsky was inactive for the Vikings game with the illness.

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Lions CB Jerry Jacobs appears headed for I.R.

Jacobs has missed practice all week with multiple listed leg injuries

On Thursday afternoon, Lions cornerback Jerry Jacobs posted to his social media account a cryptic message. It seemed to indicate that Jacobs was no longer with the Lions.

Jacobs later deleted the post, perhaps because he’s still with the team. Per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, Jacobs is headed to injured reserve.

The third-year corner has been battling leg injuries for several weeks. He was listed as out in both practice sessions this week.

With a potential return to the roster by James Houston looming, Jacobs looks like the needed spot on the 53-man roster. Jacobs started 12 games at outside CB but has not played on defense in three weeks beyond mop-up duty.

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Lions Thursday injury report: James Mitchell added, 3 OL return to action

Detroit Lions Thursday injury report: TE James Mitchell added, 3 OL return to action ahead of Sunday’s playoff game against the Rams

The penultimate Detroit Lions injury report for wild card week came out after Thursday’s practice session. Tight end Sam LaPorta and wideout Kalif Raymond were both still out with injuries suffered in the Week 18 win over Minnesota.

They were joined as non-participants by cornerback Jerry Jacobs (thigh/knee) and backup QB Teddy Bridgewater, who was out for personal reasons.

The only other player who wasn’t a full go was tight end James Mitchell, who was listed as limited with a hand injury. Mitchell was a full participant on Wednesday.

During Wednesday’s practice, offensive linemen Taylor Decker, Graham Glasgow and Frank Ragnow all sat out with veteran rest designation. They were all back on Thursday.

Lions injury report: Kicking off Week 17 in good shape

Lions injury report: Kicking off Week 17 in good shape with only one active player out with an injury

It can be hard to keep track of what day it is during this holiday season, and also when the Detroit Lions will play again. On Tuesday, the day after Christmas, the Lions were back on the practice field to get ready for Saturday’s showdown with the Cowboys in Dallas.

The Lions held a walkthrough, which means the practice participation report is an estimation from the coaching staff. It’s a pretty brief report, nonetheless.

Only one player was deemed as unable to practice: tight end Brock Wright. He continues to be sidelined with a hip injury that also kept Wright out of the last week of practice and Sunday’s win over Minnesota.

There was also just one active player who was listed as limited. Left tackle Taylor Decker is dealing with a groin injury. Decker played every snap on Sunday.

Two players currently on injured reserve who have been designated to return, DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson and FB Jason Cabinda, were also listed as limited. Neither player is on the active roster as of Tuesday.

The two other Lions who missed the Vikings game with injuries were both back as full participants. Cornerback Jerry Jacobs (hamstring) and linebacker Derrick Barnes (shoulder) were full-go designations.

Lions inactives for Week 16 vs. Vikings: Rookies and injuries abound

The Detroit Lions inactive players list for Week 16 vs. Vikings is loaded with injured players and rookies

The Lions have released the inactive players list for the Week 16 visit to the Minnesota Vikings. It’s a fairly predictable list given the injuries and current construction of the 53-man roster.

With CB Jerry Jacobs and TE Brock Wright previously ruled out due to injury and LB Derrick Barnes listed as doubtful with a shoulder injury, half the list was predetermined.

Quarterback Hendon Hooker will be inactive for his first game on the active roster. Hooker is listed as the No. 3 and emergency QB. Rookies Antoine Green, Brodric Martin and Steven Gilmore round out the inactive players.

Vikings vs. Lions: 4 offensive keys in week 16

These keys are pivotal for the Vikings offense to succeed and get the win over the Lions

The Minnesota Vikings return to U.S. Bank Stadium for a pivotal divisional matchup against the NFC North-leading Detroit Lions.

As the playoffs inch closer, both teams are fighting for a spot in the dance while trying to gain much-needed momentum to bring with them past the conclusion of the regular season. 

The Lions still have a scenario available where they can take the number-one seed in the conference and get that coveted first-round bye week. The Vikings are just fighting for a spot with an outside shot at the NFC North division title. With the Los Angeles Rams’ win over the New Orleans Saints, the Vikings hold the seventh seed and currently have a 52% chance of making the playoffs, according to NFL.com.

The Lions defense has been an up-and-down unit this season. They’re a young unit with good pieces to build their future with, such as linebacker Jack Campbell and nickel Brian Branch. They’re a unit that is stout against the run. Despite seeing the 12th most rushing attempts, they’ve allowed the eighth-fewest rushing yards.

The Minnesota offense has also been an up-and-down unit as they sort out the quarterback position down the stretch of this season. Nick Mullens came in for his first start last week and had some positive moments, but it wasn’t enough to hold off Cincinnati’s comeback bid last Saturday.

The Vikings have no choice but to keep winning if they want to hold on to their playoff spot. To do that the offense will have to follow these four keys to success against Detroit’s defense.

Lions final injury report vs. Vikings: 2 players out, 1 doubtful

Lions final injury report vs. Vikings: Jerry Jacobs and Brock Wright ruled out for Sunday’s game

The final Week 16 injury report for the Detroit Lions is a relatively short one. Two Lions have been ruled out for Sunday’s game in Minnesota, with another listed as doubtful.

Cornerback Jerry Jacobs (hamstring) and tight end Brock Wright (knee) did not practice all week and will not play on Sunday. In addition, linebacker Derrick Barnes is doubtful with a shoulder injury. No player listed as doubtful under Dan Campbell as head coach has ever played, so Barnes is effectively out as well.

Two players aiming to return from injured reserve will also not be activated this week. Defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson and fullback Jason Cabinda were ruled out, meaning they will say on I.R. through the weekend.

No other Lions carry any injury designation for Sunday’s game. That includes right tackle Penei Sewell, who was limited in practice early in the week with a shoulder issue. Sewell was a full participant on both Thursday and Friday.