The Detroit Lions have added Pat O’Connor to their 53-man roster, while elevating 2 others from the practice squad, including a big surprise.
The Detroit Lions have made their final roster moves ahead of Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings. As expected, they are adding a couple players from the practice squad to make up for the injuries to Aidan Hutchinson and Kyle Peko.
They have signed defensive tackle Pat O’Connor to the 53-man roster, while elevating edge defender Isaac Ukwu and tight end Shane Zylstra from the practice squad.
O’Connor is a former Lions seventh-round pick in 2017, but he didn’t ever end up playing for the team, as he was cut in his rookie season. Since then, he has appeared in 68 games over six seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, typically as a reserve defensive tackle. He has 24 tackles, five quarterback hits and 1.5 sacks in his career. O’Connor also has extensive special teams experience, logging at least 100 snaps with that unit in each of the past five seasons.
Earlier in the week coach Dan Campbell mentioned O’Connor as a possible replacement for Peko.
“We also have Chris Smith, we have O’Connor, we have options,” Campbell said. “It’s why we have those guys here. So, we don’t feel like we’re pinched, we feel pretty good in that regard.”
For the second straight week, Ukwu is getting the call-up to help Detroit on the edge. Last week, the undrafted rookie saw his first NFL action, and it was an up-and-down performance, as you’d expect. He played 36 snaps, finished with two tackles, a pressure, and earned a 63.5 PFF grade.
“He earned the right to be out there,” defensive line coach Terrell Williams said of Ukwu’s performance. “When you play and you coach in this league, you need guys—ask the players—they want players around them that they trust. Same thing with coaches, we want to trust these guys and make sure that they’re prepared when they go out there. This kid has been preparing for his opportunity, and he went out and did a good job. The thing you appreciate about him is he got better as the game went on. So, as long as he can continue to do that, then we’ll be in great shape.”
This is Ukwu’s second of three allowed elevations from the practice squad. After three elevations, the Lions must sign him to the 53-man roster if they want him to play another game.
The surprising elevation here is of Zylstra. While the Lions have always shown a liking to Zylstra, it’s unclear what his game day role will be. The Lions already have three tight ends on their 53-man roster: Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, and Parker Hesse, and none have an injury designation for Sunday’s game. It’s quite possible Zylstra has jumped someone on the depth chart (most likely Hesse), but we’ll see. Hesse has mostly been the Lions’ fullback and a special teams contributor.
Zylstra has not played a game since 2022 after suffering a season-ending injury during 2023 training camp. He just missed out on the roster this year but was quickly added to Detroit’s practice squad.
The Lions still have one remaining spot left on their 53-man roster. While that may seem odd, Campbell explained last week that he liked the flexibility an extra roster spot offered.
