The Detroit Lions are elevating two players for their Week 5 contest against the Cincinnati Bengals: cornerback Tre Flowers and offensive lineman Devin Cochran.
Flowers’ elevation comes as little surprise. Detroit lost starting cornerback D.J. Reed to injured reserve this week after he suffered a hamstring injury that is not considered season-ending. Additionally, Lions depth corner Khalil Dorsey was also declared out this week after he was dealing with both a concussion and a wrist injury.
Flowers was only added earlier this week, but the veteran corner has had plenty of experience since he was drafted by the Seattle Seahawks in the fifth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. In his career, he’s played in 95 games, made 44 starts, and tallied 22 pass deflections and four interceptions. He most recently played for both the Jaguars and Colts last year, making a total of five brief game appearances (16 snaps on defense, 23 on special teams).
With Flowers aboard, the Lions have the following options at cornerback against the Bengals: Terrion Arnold, Amik Robertson, Avonte Maddox, Rock Ya-sin, and Tre Flowers.
The elevation of Cochran is a bit more interesting. Left tackle Taylor Decker is questionable for Sunday’s game with a shoulder injury, but that is an injury he has played with for the past few weeks, despite barely practicing each week. If Decker were to miss the game, the Lions are likely to start Giovanni Manu, and Cochran would likely be the primary backup. That said, it’s possible Detroit simply wants more depth at the tackle position as insurance—or he’s played well enough in practice to earn the backup swing tackle job.
Cochran was quietly added to the practice squad after Week 1. This game is a bit of a homecoming for Cochran, as he went undrafted in 2022 and spent the following three seasons with the Bengals. He spent his entire rookie season on the practice squad and missed the entire 2023 season with an injury. However, he was elevated to the Bengals’ active roster halfway through the 2024 season and ended up making nine game appearances, including one start. In total, he played 152 offensive snaps, split nearly evenly between left tackle (69) and right tackle (83).
You can see the Lions’ final injury report for Week 5 here.
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