The Detroit Lions have signed veteran running back Devine Ozigbo for the second time in as many weeks.
The Lions signed the 27-year-old to their active roster ahead of their October 30 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders, but he was removed three days later. One week later, the Lions have added Ozigbo to their practise squad, adding depth to a critical position.
Devine Ozigbo Back Again
According to Jeff Risdon of USA Today’s Lions Wire, Ozigbo was released last week in order for the Lions to sign linebacker Trevor Nowaske to the active roster.
Ozigbo began the season on the practise squad for Detroit, but was promoted twice before being signed to the active roster for the Raiders game. Ozigbo had three carries for 5 yards and one reception for 8 yards in three appearances.
Ozigbo saw action on offence and special teams in the Raiders’ October 30 victory.
Lions Getting Healthier at Running Back
The Lions may be getting another significant reinforcement in the backfield, as injured David Montgomery returned to practise on November 9. Montgomery stated last week that he was recovering slowly and feeling better.
“We’re just trying to take it one day at a time,” Montgomery said last week to the Detroit Free Press. “We really don’t know right now, but we’re just trying to get me back as healthy as possible.” The bye week helps a lot; we only have a little amount of time, but otherwise, we get it perfect.
beat the Los Angeles Chargers to extend their division lead. According to heavy forecasts supplied by Quarter4, the Lions have a 59% chance of winning the game.
With Montgomery healthy, the squad could experiment with different offensive strategies. Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson intimated that Montgomery and rookie running back Jahmyr Gibbs could share the backfield.
“It’s always a fun exercise to do and certainly do it at the end of the season, the bye week’s another good time to do it, but you kind of look through your roster, the guys that are available to you and you kind of – you might rank them,” Johnson said in an interview with Lions Wire. “You say, ‘Hey, these are our top 11 guys that we really feel good about on offence,’ and usually you want to get those 11 guys out on the field together as much as possible, and I think both of those guys are among our top 11 offensive players.” So, certainly, there’s a solid case to be made for getting them both out there together more frequently.”
Johnson could not explain how the team will use both at the same time, but he believes both Montgomery and Gibbs are up to the task.
“They know the entire gameplan in and out, so some might be by series, some might be play-specific, but both those guys can handle a lot,” he said.
Nathan Dougherty is a Heavy sports reporter who covers the Buffalo Bills and the Detroit Lions. He formerly worked as an assistant editor for the Rochester Business Journal and as a writer for the athletic trade publications Coaching Management, Athletic Management, and Training & Conditioning. He is from Rochester, New York, and he is passionate about football. More information on Nathan Dougherty
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