Taking a look at the status of Detroit Lions players who can make a comeback in Week 10. The Detroit Lions are currently dealing with injuries affecting 11 players. Among these, four are injuries that will sideline them for the entire season. However, there are five players who can potentially return at any point, and there’s a new addition to this list in the form of Jason Cabinda this week.
Jason Cabinda was technically cleared for a return in Week 9, but due to the team’s bye week, his return was postponed by a week.
Let’s provide an updated overview of the injured Lions players and specify when they are eligible to make a return. Please note that the bolded players are currently eligible for a comeback.
- QB Hendon Hooker (ACL): NFI — eligible to return at any time
- QB Nate Sudfeld (ACL): IR — season-ending
- RB Zonovan Knight (shoulder): IR — season-ending
- RB Mohamed Ibrahim (hip): Practice squad IR — eligible to return in Week 13
- FB Jason Cabinda (knee): IR — eligible to return in Week 9
- TE Shane Zylstra (knee): IR — season-ending
- OT Matt Nelson (ankle): IR — eligible to return at any time
- EDGE James Houston (fibula): IR — eligible to return at any time
- CB Emmanuel Moseley (ACL): IR — season-ending
- DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson (pectoral): IR — eligible to return at any time
- LS Scott Daly (knee): IR — eligible to return in Week 14
It’s important to note that NFL teams are limited to bringing back only eight players from injured reserve over the course of a season. Thus far, the Lions have utilized three of these opportunities by bringing back Julian Okwara in Week 5, CB/KR Khalil Dorsey in Week 6, and Josh Paschal in Week 7. This leaves them with just five more chances to reinstate players to the active roster from the injured reserve.
Among the five players currently eligible for a return, it doesn’t appear that any of them will be making a comeback in the near future. Hendon Hooker mentioned to Dave Birkett of the Free Press that he has reached about 90% recovery from his ACL injury, but there doesn’t seem to be any urgency for his return. On the other hand, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, James Houston, and Matt Nelson all had injuries that required surgical procedures, and their potential return appears to be more distant, with no guarantee it will happen at all.
Among the group of eligible players, Jason Cabinda might be the closest to making a comeback, although there is limited information available about his current status. After sustaining a knee injury, Cabinda remained on the active roster for two weeks, during which he missed six practices. This suggests that the coaching and medical staff initially thought he might be nearing a return within that time frame. However, his subsequent placement on injured reserve indicates that he either experienced a setback in his recovery or that his progress wasn’t as rapid as expected, necessitating a block of time for rest and recuperation.
It’s worth noting that the Lions recently placed Daly on injured reserve, and if they believed that Cabinda or any of the eligible players on the list were close to returning, they would likely have kept the roster spot open for their return. Instead, they opted to sign a seventh off-the-ball linebacker, UDFA rookie Trevor Nowaske, from the practice squad, indicating that their priorities may have shifted.
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