DOMINIK EBERLE

The Detroit Lions have a new kicker, again.

ALLEN PARK -- The Detroit Lions remain on the quest to find stability at kicker, with a new short-term fix in the house and Austin Seibert back at practice. The 25-year-old kicker returned to practice earlier this week, and the team continues to feel like he can be the long-term answer. It’s possible the Lions roll with insurance option Michael Badgley, giving Seibert another day off before the week of rest and recovery. But he’s missed both attempts from beyond 50 yards, including a 54-yarder in the last-minute loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 3. Fipp added that they were confident in Eberle heading into last week’s game.

ALLEN PARK -- Dan Campbell said the Detroit Lions would be short-handed on offense at Wednesday’s practice, and the second-year head coach wasn’t kidding. “Chark feels a little bit better today. Swift is a little bit better. I would say everybody is a little bit better. St. Brown is a little bit better.

ALLEN PARK -- The Detroit Lions hosted two kickers on tryouts after releasing Dominik Eberle as expected on Tuesday. Pro Football Network reports the Lions hosted kickers Sam Ficken and Lirim Hajrullahu on those tryouts. Eberle missed two extra-point attempts and sent a kickoff out of bounds in Detroit’s 48-45 loss to the Seattle Seahawks last week. He played for the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys in 2021, making four of his five field-goal attempts and all eight extra points. Then Seibert missed a week’s worth of practices while watching the action in sweats from the sidelines.

ALLEN PARK -- The Detroit Lions’ two-year odyssey to replace Matt Prater hit yet another snag on Sunday, when fill-in kicker Dominik Eberle missed two point-after attempts and pushed a kickoff out of bounds in the 48-45 loss against Seattle. “Yeah, I mean it’s -- it is what it is,” a clearly frustrated Dan Campbell said after the loss. A day later, the Lions already have a kicker tryout on the books. And before you ask: Yes, he’s made both of his point-after attempts. Then he didn’t practice at all last week because of soreness in his right groin, which prompted the Lions to sign Eberle off the practice squad.

Geno Smith threw for two touchdowns and ran for a score in the first half, and the Seattle Seahawks held off the Detroit Lions for a 48-45 win.

DETROIT -- With Amon-Ra St. Brown and D’Andre Swift already ruled against Seattle, DJ Chark was needed more than ever. The Lions have scratched their star free agent because of an ankle injury he suffered last week in Minnesota. He missed practice on Thursday, but that was precautionary than anything because Chark had surgery on that ankle last year. He’s been ruled out, leaving Detroit with just Josh Reynolds still standing in its starting receiver corps. To make room on the roster for the signings, Detroit released tight end Shane Zylstra and guard Drew Forbes.

ALLEN PARK -- The beat-up Detroit Lions have officially ruled out five players for Sunday’s game against Seattle, including star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, star running back D’Andre Swift and Pro Bowl guard Jonah Jackson. Practice-squaders like Maurice Alexander and Tom Kennedy could also be candidates for one-game elevations to help Detroit get through the weekend. With Jackson missing a third straight game up front, practice squad offensive tackle Dan Skipper is another candidate for an elevation to the 53-man roster. “That being said, we do have the other dude on the practice squad. He had an outstanding workout when we brought him in here and we’re excited about that.”That other dude on the practice squad is Dominik Eberle, who is now in line to make his NFL debut.

ALLEN PARK -- Lions kicker Austin Seibert missed two long field goals in Minnesota, including a 54-yarder that helped swing the game in the Vikings’ favor in the final minutes. Now he’s missed three straight practices too, and his availability is in question heading into Sunday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks. Special teams coordinator Dave Fipp sounded optimistic about the kicker’s health on Thursday, but Seibert continued to miss practice a day later. “That being said, we do have the other dude on the practice squad. At Utah State, he made 64 of 81 field-goal attempts (79.0%) with a long of 52 yards.