There were eight injured players on the Detroit Lions’ active roster going into their Week 4 matchup against the Green Bay Packers.
Jason Cabinda, Halapoulivaati Vaitai, Emmanuel Moseley, and Kerby Joseph were all declared out or inactive for the Lions, and four other players continued to play despite their injuries. Center Frank Ragnow (toe), left guard Jonah Jackson (thigh), and running back David Montgomery (thigh) all played the entire game and didn’t appear any worse for wear.
Starting left tackle Taylor Decker’s (ankle) ankle wasn’t feeling well during the game, and there were reports that he tweaked it and was concerned he might have hurt it again.
Decker told Justin Rogers of the Detroit News, “It sucked.” “I mean, I was kind of expecting that. It’s definitely aggravated, and ideally, there hasn’t been any further damage or setbacks. However, we still have a few days before the next game, so I’ll probably have to put up with it for the time being.
Three more Lions were forced to leave the field during the game, but they all came back after short stints. Derrick Barnes, the linebacker, had cramps, but he was able to get past them rather quickly. Despite having a medical condition, defensive back Chase Lucas was only absent for one special teams snap before making a comeback. The most worrying injury, it seemed, was to defensive back Brian Branch, who rolled his ankle so badly that he had to be carted to the locker room.
Branch went back out on the field, but it was obvious he was experiencing pain in his ankle. After a while, his ankle gave way once more, forcing him to be sidelined for the rest of the fourth quarter.
Branch may need some time to heal from his soft tissue injury, but the good news is that the x-rays revealed no bone fractures, improving his prognosis.
Coach Dan Campbell was questioned on Friday regarding Decker and Branch’s injuries. The update had a generally positive tone, even though he made it seem like things were still in flux.
By this afternoon, I’ll know more, Campbell said. However, I think Decker helped us win the game fairly well. I don’t really have anything to report because it doesn’t seem like Branch’s issue is too serious, but I also don’t know how he will feel until we resume this week.
The Lions get a little extra time off this week because their game was on a Thursday night. It is anticipated that players will take the weekend off to rest and then report back to work on Monday. The official injury report won’t be released until Wednesday, but when Campbell meets with the media early next week, he might have more information.
