Lions head coach Dan Campbell provided injury updates on Saturday, including news that another defensive lineman will miss the rest of the season.
Saturday isn’t a typical day for an NFL head coach’s press conference, but this week has been unusual for the Detroit Lions. They played on Thanksgiving Day and are preparing for a Thursday night game against the Green Bay Packers, creating a unique schedule.
Campbell took the podium at the team’s facility in Allen Park, starting with the acknowledgement that this session could have been postponed to Monday, before opening the floor to questions.
He was asked about players injured or unavailable during Thursday’s game. As a sign of how dire the situation is on the defensive side, he paused to jot down names before diving into the updates.
Lions injury updates: Another defensive lineman lost for the season
Campbell confirmed Saturday’s earlier reports that linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez is out for the season after a knee injury sustained on Thursday.
“Hate it for Malcolm. He was playing so dang good for us, he’s been a staple for us defensively, especially with the injuries,” Campbell said. “Before that, he was playing for us, not like he wasn’t really a spot starter anyway, and then took over that role with the injuries. Special teams guy for us. It’s another one, we hate to lose him. It’s hard. The good news is once he has this done, he’ll be good to go next year and he’ll be healthy and ready to roll.”
Rookie defensive lineman Mekhi Wingo suffered a knee injury on Thursday but was able to continue playing. Campbell shared that Wingo will need surgery and is done for the season.
“Wingo is going to be out, he’ll be done for the season,” Campbell said. “His [injury] will probably require surgery, so that’s another one. Hate that for him, but I think everything will be clean and he’ll be healed up for next year and that’s good news.”
Defensive linemen Josh Paschal and Levi Onwuzurike also left the game against the Bears on Thursday. Campbell shared similar thoughts on both players.
“Paschal, it’s hard to say, really he and Levi [Onwuzurike] are day-to-day,” Campbell said. “I think Paschal has got a better shot than Levi […] I don’t know, I’m not real optimistic about either one of them playing (against the Packers), but I guess Paschal’s got a better shot.”
Cornerback Emmanuel Moseley was a surprise inactive on Thursday, and after the game, Campbell revealed he had a flare-up during pre-game warmups. Saturday’s update was positive, as the team was being cautious due to Moseley’s injury history.
“E-Man, I think he’s going to be good to go,” Campbell said. “Had a little something that flared up on him and it didn’t feel right. Just knowing what we were going to ask him to do, we didn’t want to take that risk of him trying to open up and run, but it looks like he’s going to be just fine.”
Cornerback Carlton Davis missed the Thanksgiving Day game due to a knee injury from Week 12 and is also dealing with a broken thumb. Given the extra time before the Lions’ next game, Campbell labeled Davis “day-to-day, questionable” for the Packers matchup.
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