Tag: Miles Killebrew

Lions Week 11 injury report: Stafford, 5 others unable to practice on Wednesday

The Detroit Lions open Week 11 with six players unable to practice on Wednesday, including five starters including Matthew Stafford.

The Detroit Lions (3-5-1) are preparing to host the Dallas Cowboys (5-4) in Week 11 and they opened the week with several key players injured. Six Lions’ players were unable to practice on Wednesday, including five starters.

Let’s take a closer look at which Lions’ players are injured, their current participation level, and what their early expectations for the week are.

Not Practicing Wednesday

QB Matthew Stafford (back, hip)
RB Ty Johnson (concussion)
RT Rick Wagner (concussion)
DL Da’Shawn Hand (ankle)
S Tracy Walker (knee)
DE Romeo Okwara (groin)

When coach Matt Patricia opened his morning press conference, he declared everyone on this list out — everyone except Stafford.

Any hopes that Stafford would return to today’s practice was quickly squashed when he showed up at practice with no pads or helmet. The timeline for Stafford return is very much up in the air and could linger.

Johnson and Wagner suffered concussions in last week’s game and are currently in the league’s protocol. Either would need to return to the field tomorrow if they want a chance to play this weekend.

Walker and Hand missed all of last week — practices and the game — and their continued absence is not a great sign for their status for the weekend.

Okwara was injured mid-week, listed as questionable heading into the game and was ruled out after pre-game warmups. He now opens the week unable to practice indicating there could be a regression in his healing process.

Limited

LB/S Miles Killebrew (concussion)
NT John Atkins (wrist)
P Sam Martin (abdomen)

After suffering a concussion last Thursday in practice, Killebrew was able to return to the field today, suggesting he has passed the first few stages of the league’s protocol. Brain injuries are often difficult to project and he still has hurdles to climb, but pending medical monitoring throughout the week, he could return to the field this weekend.

Atkins’ wrist is a new addition to the injury report, but limited participation is a positive sign. Additionally, last Sunday Atkins saw 35-percent of defensive snaps, well above his typical allotment, further pointing the arrow in a positive direction.

Martin is abdomen is still bothering him but it didn’t prevent him from playing last weekend. With no other punter signed to the roster this week, he appears on track to play against the Cowboys.

Full participants

DT Mike Daniels (foot)
DT A’Shawn Robinson (ankle, thumb)
DT Damon Harrison (groin)
WR Danny Amendola (hand)

With Daniels, Robinson and Harrison all injured, every rostered defensive tackle is dealing with some level of injury. The fact that all three are full participants is excellent news, although it wouldn’t be surprising to see Harrison get a rest day on Thursday, as has been the recent routine.

Amendola didn’t seem hampered by the hand injury last game and expectations are he will be good to go again this weekend in a matchup where he could be a major factor.

No longer listed on the injury report

CB Darius Slay (hamstring)
RG Graham Glasgow (back)
LG Joe Dahl (ankle)

All three started last week and played over 90-percent of snaps. This is a great sign for their future availability.

Injured Reserve

DT Kevin Strong (rib)
EDGE Austin Bryant (pectoral)

Strong was placed on IR on Tuesday, ending a very promising rookie season. Despite entering the league as an undrafted free agent, Strong made his mark in training camp, earning a spot on the 53-man roster and seeing the field between 20 and 45-percent of weekly defensive snaps. Expectations are he will take the remaining time this season to heal up and return healthy for next years offseason.

Bryant is now two weeks into his 21-day practice window and the Lions will have to make a decision on his status sometime within the next week. A decision could be made at any time, depending on his health and ability to get up to speed on defense.

Dallas Cowboys injury report

The Cowboys may lose their starting left guard Connor Williams to injury.

Lions add another 3 players to an already extensive injury report

After a Week 10 loss to the Chicago Bears, the Detroit Lions added another three players to an already extensive injury report.

In Week 10, the Detroit Lions (3-5-1) were on the wrong end of another one-score game, this time falling to the Chicago Bears, but the scoreboard wasn’t the only place the team lost — as the Lions added another three players to an already extensive injury report.

As the Lions head into Week 11, and a matchup with the Dallas Cowboys, the team needs to get healthy in several key areas.

Here’s what we know about all the team’s current injuries:

The Franchise

QB Matthew Stafford (back, hip)

Stafford’s start streak ended at 136 games due to a fractured bone in his back. Reports have been mixed, suggesting he could recover and return to game action as soon as this week or miss multiple games — ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported a source told him Stafford could be sidelined as few as one and as many as “3 weeks”.

When coach Matt Patricia was asked if Stafford’s fracture could be season-ending, he responded, “For us right now, I’m not getting into the specifics of what it is exactly. It’s day by day, week by week. We’ll see how it goes
from that aspect of it and see how everything just progresses, I guess.”

Not a lot of clarity there.

This fractured bone in his back injury is separate from the injury that required him to have back surgery last offseason and is also not related to his current hip injury that he has been suffering through for over a month now.

With the Lions’ playoff hopes all but shattered, and Stafford dealing with multiple injuries for a significant length of time now, it’s fair to wonder if the team would be better served shutting Stafford down for the season and allowing him to fully heal — Our own Scott Warheit believes they should do just that.

Injured during the game

RB Ty Johnson (concussion)
RT Rick Wagner (concussion)
DT Kevin Strong (rib)
DT Mike Daniels (foot before the game, leg during the game)
DT A’Shawn Robinson (ankle before, thumb during)
CB Darius Slay (hamstring before, toe during)

Johnson and Wagner were ruled out of Sunday’s game and will be in concussion protocol to start the week. The NFL has a five-step recovery protocol that players must pass before they can return to participation. This is an extensive process and typically takes at least a week’s worth of practices to complete if not more.

Strong injured his ribs and exited the game in the second half. He was listed as questionable but I did not see him return to the field on Sunday.

Daniels, Robinson and Slay were all dealing with an injury heading into this game and then suffered new injuries that forced them to leave the field for brief periods of time. Robinson and Slay returned to game action, while Daniels replied to reporters after the game that he was “fine”.

Ruled out before the game

DL Da’Shawn Hand (ankle)
S Tracy Walker (knee)
LB/S Miles Killebrew (concussion)
DE Romeo Okwara (groin)

No updates on these players until the team reports to practice on Wednesday.

Injured heading into the game

RG Graham Glasgow (back)
LG Joe Dahl (ankle)
DT Damon Harrison (groin)
P Sam Martin (abdomen)

All four players in this section were able to play their full complement of snaps on Sunday and expectations are that they will be participants at practice, even if it in a limited fashion.