The Detroit Lions have removed Alex Anzalone and Kalif Raymond from IR and added them back onto the 53-man roster.
The Detroit Lions have officially removed Alex Anzalone and Kalif Raymond from injured reserve and added them to the active roster. The Lions released Morice Norris and Tom Kennedy earlier in the week, creating two openings on the roster, and therefore no corresponding moves are required.
In Week 11, Anzalone broke his forearm while making a tackle during the Lions game against the Jaguars and he’s been on injured reserve for the last six weeks. This week, his injury evaluation window was opened and he began practicing. Even though the Lions had 21 days to make an assessment on his status, they activated him after just three practices. Given that it is a bone injury rather than a soft tissue or ligament issue, a shorter evaluation time is not unusual.
During practices, Anzalone has been wearing a removable brace on his injured forearm and he will likely keep that added level of protection when he is finally ready to take the field on game day.
While Anzalone is back on the 53-man roster, it appears he is still weighing the pros and cons of playing against the Vikings in Week 18.
“Obviously, the doctors and the trainers, they go through what the risks are: waiting a week, waiting two weeks, going through practice, maybe letting it spin next week or the week after that or this week,” Anzalone said. “So I think that for me personally, I think it’s like, ‘Okay, say if something did happen, would I be okay not playing in the Super Bowl?’ So I think that’s kind of the decision I have to make in my own head, and is it worth it?”
Lions coach Dan Campbell also noted that Anzalone is relearning how to trust his body, which takes time to ensure it’s right.
“The only way to trust it is to do it,” Campbell said. “(You need) to use it and do it and bang away in there, and you’ve just got to rep it. You’ve got to rep it a little bit, get comfortable. Like, ‘Man, that was a pretty violent hit and I didn’t feel anything.’ Or, ‘Oh, that wasn’t what I thought it was going to be.’ And that becomes a mental thing. Listen, if he’s going to play, it’s because we know he’s going to be able to go full-tilt and he’s going to be able to help us and he’s going to be able to protect himself, play at a high level, and we can trust that and we’re not putting him in harm’s way. And if we don’t feel that way, we’re not going to play him, it’s not worth it.”
It certainly sounds like the Lions are planning on keeping his status close to the vest and we may have to wait until inactives are released on Sunday night before we will know his game status.
As for Raymond, he injured his hamstring against the Colts (the week after Anzlone was injured) and spent four weeks on injured reserve before returning to practice and opening his injury evaluation window. During his open window, Raymond has completed six practices as a full participant and his activation was anticipated, especially considering the Lions released Tom Kennedy—who had been filling in—earlier in the week.
Raymond will immediately reassume punt and kick return duties and will likely jump back into the WR4 role on offense. His acclimation could take a minute, but it’s worth pointing out that three of his 16 catches on the season and one of his two receiving touchdowns came in Week 7 when the Lions first faced off against the Vikings.
