According to Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell, left tackle Taylor Decker is expected to miss Friday’s practice with his shoulder injury, meaning he’ll miss all of this week’s practices in the lead up to Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears.
Although it’s extremely rare for a Lions player to miss the full week of practices and play, Campbell noted if there’s a player that doesn’t need to practice, it may be a veteran like Decker.
“Decker’s played a lot of football, so he’ll be ready. He’ll be ready as long as it feels right,” Campbell said.
That said, Campbell also noted that they need to be smart with a player like Decker. While the left tackle has made clear he wants to go vs. the Bears, it’s only Week 2. And with this being an injury that could potentially linger, they need to weigh the short-term benefits vs. the long-term costs of playing Decker.
“Deck wants to play. I’m going to make that very clear. Deck wants to play. So this is about the long-term season, is what this is going to come down to. Just as far as what we do for this one,” Campbell said.
If Decker can’t go, the Lions are expected to turn to second-year lineman Giovanni Manu, because Jamarco Jones was put on injured reserve last week and veteran practice squader Dan Skipper still sidelined with a knee injury. Last week was the first time Manu was active on game day, and he has yet to take an offensive snap at the NFL level. Campbell, however, said he’s been encouraged by how Manu has looked in practice.
“He’s going to have to be ready, and he knows that. He’s been getting reps all week,” Campbell said. “I did think he practiced better these last two days, which is good, and he’s part of a whole unit. He’s part of all five of those guys up there. He’ll be ready.”
But Campbell also admitted they’ll have to tweak the game plan a bit if they have to go with Manu over Decker, a 10-year veteran.
“It changes. It changes some things,” Campbell said. “But I think it’s like anything else, you’ve got to stay ahead of the sticks. You’ve got to stay in manageable situations, and you do that—Manu’s no different than any other player. He’s got strengths, and then he’s got things he’s got to continue to work on as he grows and develops. So we’ll use his strengths.“
On Thursday, offensive coordinator John Morton said, “We’re totally expecting Decker to play,” but Campbell was a little more cautious in his approach.
“We feel good right now, and, there again, we’ve still got another day here and we’ll see,” Campbell said. “I can’t give you a definitive, ‘Yes (he’ll play).‘ That’s where it’s at.”
The final injury report of the week is expected around 4 p.m. ET on Friday.
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