The Detroit Lions could be missing a key player in the secondary when they face the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday Night Football.
The team’s final injury report on September 6 listed safety Ifeatu Melifonwu as doubtful for the game with an ankle injury. Though head coach Dan Campbell said the fourth-year defensive back has been improving throughout the week, he cast doubt on whether he would be able to take the field in the season opener.
Dan Campbell ‘Not Optimistic’ on Safety Playing
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Campbell had a troubling update on Melifonwu and admitted he was “not optimistic” about his availability for the game.
“He’s better, he’s better,” Campbell said, via SB Nation’s Pride of Detroit. “We’ll see. I’m not as optimistic about him, but we’ll see.”
Melifonwu has been an important reserve for the Lions since coming to the team as a third-round pick in 2021. He appeared in all 17 games last season with six starts, making 33 total tackles with two interceptions, a forced fumble, and eight passes defended.
The Lions will already be without safety Loren Strickland, who was ruled out of Sunday’s game with a thumb injury.
The Lions made major changes to their secondary this offseason, signing veteran cornerbacks Carlton Davis III and Amik Robertson and using their top to draft picks on cornerbacks Terrion Arnold in the first round and Ennis Rakestraw Jr. in the second round.
Linebacker Alex Anzalone shared optimism for the revamped defense, saying the unit should be more well-rounded going into 2024.
“We all know assets were contributed as far as getting some DB’s and some D-linemen,” Anzalone said Monday, via the team’s official website. “I feel like the best way I describe it is we are so much more squared away. Just top down from defensive coaching staff to the bottom of the defense. It’s a good feeling going into the season.”
Another Key Defender Trending in Right Direction
While Melifonwu is not expected to take the field for Sunday’s rematch of the last season’s wild card matchup, another key member of the defense is going in the right direction. Nose tackle DJ Reader was listed as questionable after missing the team’s offseason program with a torn quad and had been originally expected to return in Week 2, but was listed as questionable for Sunday’s game after returning to practice this week.
“Yeah, he looked pretty good,” Campbell said, via MLive.com. “Now it’s just a matter of, if he plays, how many can he play? By doing that, will he have the ability to get a little bit more next week, or is it just a setback, or are we just kind of even right now? … He’s continuing to get better every day. He took a lot more yesterday, which was good.”
The Lions have been hit by other injuries even before the season started, with returning cornerback Emmanuel Moseley being placed on injured reserve with a torn pectoral muscle. Moseley suffered a torn ACL in 2022 and then tore the ACL on his opposite leg in his season debut with the Lions last year.
