ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Victory Monday was, admittedly, a bit more somber for Dan Campbell this week.
His Detroit Lions improved to 2-1 on the season following a 20-13 win over the Arizona Cardinals. But it didn’t come without a cost — the health of several key players. You could sense it in Campbell’s tone on Monday, sounding like a coach trying to pick up the pieces.
“Start here, (Lions DL Marcus) Davenport will be out,” Campbell began, going down a laundry list of injuries. “Looks like that’s a season-ender there. We’re still getting some other opinions on it. (Lions LB Derrick) Barnes is going to be down a significant amount of time, and then, really, everybody else is day-to-day. (Lions DL Alim McNeill) Mac will be day-to-day, (Lions TE Sam) LaPorta’s day-to-day and (Lions DB Brian) Branch is in the protocol, but as of today, he was doing pretty good, so we’ll see where that goes.”
Those are five of Detroit’s 22 starters, all with varying timelines and injuries. Add All-Pro center Frank Ragnow in there, too, after Campbell confirmed he suffered a torn pec. In a game where you couldn’t go five minutes without a player needing assistance from a trainer, the Lions weren’t able to leave Arizona unscathed, and the aftermath left them with a hobbled team just three weeks into a promising season.
Here’s everything you need to know about the injury list, and how the Lions could stay afloat.
Edge Marcus Davenport (elbow), out for the season
We’ll start with Davenport, a free-agent addition who was signed to help reshape Detroit’s defensive line. A talented pass rusher available for just $6.5 million on a one-year deal, it spoke more about his lack of availability than his skill set. Injuries have derailed the former first-rounder’s career. He’s never played an entire season. He played just four games for the Minnesota Vikings last season. If Davenport does miss the rest of the 2024 season, it’ll be over three games in — with Davenport only playing in two of those games.
That was always the risk with a signing like this. Players are at the mercy of their own bodies, and sometimes, those bodies betray them. That appears to be the case with Davenport — a man who simply can’t seem to catch a break. He was brought here to be the powerful, pocket-collapsing edge rusher the Lions have needed opposite Aidan Hutchinson. For two games, he certainly looked the part. You just wondered how long it would hold up. We now have our answer.
“It’s super unfortunate,” Lions defensive tackle DJ Reader said. “You never want to lose one of your brothers. We all know it’s part of the game. They know it. We know it. They’re going to be here, they’re part of us, you don’t lose them. They always come with you. You just bring those guys with you and hope that you can be there in their corner as they battle what they’re going through. It’s a tough battle for them. The best thing you can do as a teammate is just shine that light on the team. Show them how they’ve helped you and make sure it doesn’t go wasted.”
So, then, how might the Lions move forward? It’s likely to be a bit of a committee approach. Levi Onwuzurike can play the edge and has at times this season. We could see more of Josh Paschal taking on the Davenport role as an edge-setter in the run game or on early downs, with Onwuzurike kicking out on obvious passing situations. James Houston can’t do the things Davenport can, but if the Lions are looking to recoup some pass-rush juice, maybe we see more of him. Perhaps Isaac Ukwu gets the call from the practice squad.
LB Derrick Barnes, knee, out indefinitely
Campbell mentioned linebacker Derrick Barnes as another player set to miss extended time, and that might be a bigger blow than Davenport. He’s arguably the most versatile player on this Lions’ defense, capable of rushing the passer (63 defensive line snaps this season), playing in the box as a stack linebacker (34 snaps) and in the slot (23 snaps) as a coverage defender. He found a home in this jack-of-all-trades role — in a contract year, no less — but the Lions will be without his services for a bit. There’s really no one else on this Lions’ roster who can do what he does, as well as he does.
The Lions have tried Houston at Sam linebacker, but it’s an experiment they’ve moved off of. Mitchell Agude played some Sam during training camp and remains on the practice squad. Or the Lions could go with a more traditional linebacker like Jalen Reeves-Maybin. They’ll work to find the right solution.
“He can do so many things,” linebacker Jack Campbell said of Barnes. “He’s just such a special player. …We’re gonna need other guys to step up just at the outside backer position, and I feel like we have a great room with that, and obviously, some flexibility there, just with Anzo (Alex Anzalone) being able to play multiple positions, Jerm (Jalen Reeves-Maybin) being able to play multiple positions, (Ben) Niemann being able to step in. Within that nucleus of guys, you’re gonna see someone step up and just do a fantastic job.”
C Frank Ragnow (torn pec), TBD
The injury that came out of nowhere was Ragnow’s. It was reported late Monday evening that Ragnow had suffered a torn pec in the win over the Cardinals, an injury that happened early on. He played the entire game. Par for the course with him. He’s considered week-to-week.
“First of all, Frank is stubborn,” Campbell said. “He’s hard-headed, Frank. He’s tough, he’s stubborn, so he wants to go. He always wants to go. But this is something we’re still talking about right now, not entirely sure what we’re going to do with him. A lot of is, where is he going to feel by the middle or end of the week?”
The question will be how the Lions want to play this injury. It doesn’t sound like a major tear that would make for a lengthy absence. Ragnow’s pain tolerance is higher than most, so maybe the Lions sit him for Monday night’s game vs. the Seahawks and re-evaluate in Week 6, following the team’s Week 5 bye. If Ragnow misses this week, there are a few options to replace him. The most likely scenario would involve Graham Glasgow moving from left guard to center, with one of Michael Niese or Kayode Awosika at guard. They could also put Niese at center if they want to keep Glasgow at guard and avoid disrupting multiple positions. But knowing Ragnow, you can’t rule out that he plays through this.
Other injuries
LaPorta,Branch and McNeill left Sunday’s game. LaPorta is dealing with an ankle sprain, per Campbell, and while he tried to play through it, he clearly didn’t look like himself. LaPorta is known to play through injuries, but with a Week 5 bye, it could make sense to sit him and let him heal up. If he’s forced to miss time, expect Brock Wright to be more involved in the passing game. We could also see a practice squad tight end like Shane Zylstra get the call.
Branch was part of a scary moment in the game — colliding helmets with Cardinals tight end Trey McBride left him motionless on the ground for a brief moment. He later walked off the field and is in concussion protocol. Campbell said he’s “doing good,” but they could play it safe and sit him like they did with Anzalone last week. Second-year safety Brandon Joseph is next in line, with Ifeatu Melifonwu still recovering from an ankle injury. And finally, McNeill is dealing with a shoulder injury. He left Sunday’s game and did not return. Rookie sixth-rounder Mekhi Wingo could be in line for more snaps if McNeill can’t go.
This is a less-than-ideal situation for the Lions. Their depth will be tested. We’ll see if they’re ready.
(Top photo: Michael Owens / Getty Images)
