DETROIT – The Detroit Lions finally have a team good enough to compete for a division title, and just two weeks into the season, injuries are threatening to derail them.
It feels like so long ago that the Lions were walking off the field in Kansas City after taking down the Super Bowl champion Chiefs. Since then, the team has lost to the Seattle Seahawks and lost a half-dozen players to injury.
First, it was defensive lineman Josh Paschal, who the Lions drafted in the second round last season. Paschal returned from an injury-riddled rookie campaign to make a big play against the Chiefs in the opener. Now he’s back on injured reserve with a knee injury.
Right next to Paschal on last week’s injury report was star left tackle Taylor Decker, who hurt his ankle. Decker hasn’t been placed on IR, but unclear whether he’ll return next week or be slowed by the injury long-term.
The prognosis for fellow offensive lineman Halapoulivaati Vaitai looks even worse. After missing all of 2022 with a bad back, Vaitai looked excellent at guard in the opener, but got rolled up on during the Seahawks loss. Head coach Dan Campell said Vaitai could be out for “a little bit.”
Running back David Montgomery seems to be on a similar timeline. He was carted off the field Sunday with a thigh injury and is expected to miss at least a couple of weeks.
Then, to top it all off, pass rusher James Houston was placed on IR with an ankle injury and will miss a minimum of 6-8 weeks. Houston was instrumental in the team’s turnaround during last year’s second half, racking up eight sacks in the final seven games.
Star offseason acquisition C.J. Gardner-Johnson might also be out long-term, potentially even for the entire season, due to a pectoral injury. Gardner-Johnson has turned into Detroit’s leader on defense, and losing him would be a devastating blow for an already iffy secondary.
Oh yeah, and the team’s top cornerback signee from this offseason, Emmanuel Moseley, hasn’t played yet because of knee and hamstring injuries.
Every team in the NFL deals with injuries, but it sure feels like the Lions got bit as bad as anyone, right when they were about to take a step forward as an organization.