Allen Park—The Detroit Lions have placed tight end James Mitchell and cornerback Jerry Jacobs on injured reserve, ending their careers one day before the Los Angeles Rams play in the playoffs. In exchange, Detroit has added tight end Anthony Firkser and cornerback Chase Lucas to the 53-man roster. The loss of Mitchell could be particularly felt against Los Angeles, as star rookie tight end Sam LaPorta is recovering from a hyperextended left knee and bone bruise; even if he is cleared to play, he might not be able to handle his regular workload. Therefore, losing a backup now further reduces the team’s depth at that position.
Brock Wright is still Detroit’s tight end, and the team has also signed Firkser off the practice squad. The former Harvard star has appeared in 71 games in his six-year career, and caught 115 passes for 1,207 yards and five touchdowns. This season, he has made two appearances for Detroit, logging two offensive snaps and another 22 on special teams.
Conversely, Jacobs’ difficult season has encountered yet another setback. He was benched in the second half of the season after struggling at cornerback, and this week he added a knee issue to his list of ailments. He also battled a thigh injury. Now is the end of his season.
In recent weeks, Jacobs was reduced to a special teams duty. Lucas, who has played 230 special teams snaps for the team this season but was cut last week to help create room for the return of Ceedy Duce and Alim McNeill, has been re-signed by Detroit to replace those contributions.
Additionally, Detroit is temporarily promoting fullback Jason Cabinda and veteran defensive tackle Tyson Alualu from the practice squad. This season, Alualu, a 14-year veteran, will be playing for the Lions for the third time. In the last two regular season games, he played 67 defensive repetitions. Now he has no more altitudes.
A knee injury kept Cabina out of action for a while, but last week he was back in action.
