Things have gone from bad to worse for the Detroit Lions’ cornerback room ahead of their Sunday Night Football matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Lions officially placed backup cornerback Khalil Dorsey on the injured reserve list on Wednesday after he suffered a wrist injury in last week’s practice that caused the team to rule him out for Week 5’s win over the Cincinnati Bengals last Sunday.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell had indicated that Dorsey would be out for “a while” earlier this week when speaking about the injuries they have sustained at cornerback, but Dorsey’s placement on IR ensures he will miss at least the next four games.
The Lions were already looking like a bare-bones unit at cornerback before making the move with Dorsey. They placed veteran starter D.J. Reed on injured reserve last week with a hamstring injury and saw their other starter, Terrion Arnold, carted off the field with a shoulder injury against the Bengals. Both cornerbacks are out indefinitely.
That could mean, without roster adjustments, the Lions (4-1) will face the Chiefs (2-3) with Amik Robertson, Rock Ya-Sin and Avonte Maddox as their only healthy corners on their active roster. They also have Tre Flowers and Arthur Maulet on the practice squad to consider elevating to the roster before their 8:20 p.m. ET kickoff on Sunday night.
Lions Caught Break With Terrion Arnold’s Injury
The Lions won’t have three of their top cornerbacks — four, if you also count Ennis Rakestraw Jr., who landed on IR in training camp — when they face the Chiefs this week, but the latest update on Arnold’s injury indicates they may have caught a break.
“A second opinion on Lions CB Terrion Arnold’s shoulder today revealed the injury is not as bad as feared, and he is now expected to return, as one source described, ‘sooner than expected,’ quite possibly this month,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Tuesday.
While the good news about Arnold does not provide the Lions with immediate relief, it could dictate how they proceed with their patchwork at the position over the next few weeks while they wait for him to heal. It could also explain why the Lions did not place Arnold on IR alongside Dorsey, as they may expect him back sooner than four games.
In the meantime, however, the Lions will feel the pressure to make another move.
Will Lions Need to Make a Move to Survive at Corner?
The Lions could have both Reed and Arnold back in their lineup by November if each of them progresses smoothly through his injury recovery. During the intervening weeks, though, will the Lions need to make a roster move at cornerback to keep on winning?
The Lions’ hopes that Reed and Arnold will return at some point in 2025 might prevent them from making a big-time acquisition before the NFL trade deadline, but they could still explore lower-cost options on the market. Perhaps the Seattle Seahawks would part ways with Riq Woolen — who is in a contract year — for a reasonable trade price.
If the Lions are not interested in trading for help, then perhaps a signing makes more sense for them. Former Pro Bowl veteran Stephon Gilmore and Kendall Fuller are two of the best available free-agent options. They could also kick the tires on Asante Samuel Jr., depending on how much progress he has made recovering from neck surgery.
Whatever the Lions decide, it seems outrageous to think they will leave their cornerback room untouched, given how much depth they have lost from it in the past few weeks.
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