Tight end Anthony Firkser’s return to the Lions turned out to be a brief one. Firkser signed with the team on July 31, but his run on the active roster ended when the team placed him on injured reserve Tuesday morning. Head coach Dan Campbell said at his press conference that Firkser fractured his fibula. When the Lions initially signed Firkser, they waived tight end Zach Horton in a corresponding move. Horton re-signed with the team on Tuesday to fill the spot opened up by Firkser’s injury. Firkser played for the Lions in 2023 and 2025 and returned to the team after being released by the Commanders in July
Tight end Anthony Firkser is back with the Lions. The team announced Firkser’s signing on Friday morning. The Commanders released Firkser earlier this week. Firkser played for the Lions last season and in 2023. He had eight catches for 53 yards in seven games last year and played in two games during his first stint with the team. Firkser has also played for the Titans, Falcons, Chiefs and Jets. He has 123 catches for 1,260 yards and five touchdowns in 85 career games. Tight end Zach Horton was waived in a corresponding move. Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, and Tyler Conklin are the other veteran tight ends in Detroit, although Conklin is currently on the physically unable to perform list
We’re just over a week away from the Detroit Lions opening training camp for the 2026 season. With that in mind, I figured now was a good time to give my own perspective on the team’s 90-man roster and what it may look like after the dust of camp and the preseason has settled. Obviously, the outlook of this projection will change over the next month as the players jockey for spots. But here’s how I believe the roster stands before the players take the field. QB Jared Goff QB Teddy Bridgewater QB Luke Altmyer I am not counting out rookie UDFA Luke Altmyer winning a roster spot by the end of training camp, but the much more likely scenario is that he sticks around on the practice squad to continue his development. But if he balls out in the preseason, it could produce an interesting conversation. RB Jahmyr Gibbs RB Isiah Pacheco RB Sione Vaki RB Jacob Saylors RB Kye Robichaux RB Jabari Small Gibbs through Vaki are essentially locks to me. The question is whether Detroit should carry a fourth running back. Generally, they do , and when the Lions chose Saylors over Craig Reynolds last season, I think it was a revelation of how much they value his special teams. TE Sam LaPorta TE Brock Wright TE Tyler Conklin TE Zach Horton TE Thomas Gordon TE Miles Kitselman The Lions have recently only kept three tight ends on their roster, but I do wonder if last year’s depleted depth will make them reconsider in 2026. It’s hard for me to pick between Horton, Gordon, and Kitselman with little observations on each. If Drew Petzing plans on running more 13 personnel in Detroit, the Lions would almost certainly keep a fourth. However, they also invested highly in their wide receiver group, so I’m not convinced 13 personnel is coming to Detroit. Therefore, I’m keeping three tight ends for now. WR Amon-Ra St. Brown WR Jameson Williams WR Isaac TeSlaa WR Greg Dortch WR Cedrick Wilson Jr. WR Dominic Lovett WR Jackson Meeks WR Tom Kennedy WR Tay Martin WR Lawrence Keys WR Lucky Jackson WR Tarik Black WR Malik Cunningham When I made my initial picks for the 53-man roster, I was only at 52 players with Dominic Lovett out. He’s thus far underwhelmed as both a receiver (too many drops) and special teams (just 50 snaps his rookie season). However, Detroit invested in him, and he could see a Year 2 jump. I very much considered Jackson Meeks here, especially considering I went light at tight end, but I still think he is a work in progress at both WR and TE. OT Blake Miller OT Penei Sewell OT Larry Borom OT Giovanni Manu OT Devin Cochran Giovanni Manu was also one of my last players in. Admittedly, he may spend most weeks as an inactive in this role, but I do think Detroit would be willing to give him one more year to develop. After all, Larry Borom is only on a one-year deal. I’m still giving Manu a shot to become the OT3 of the future, even if if the door to a starting offensive tackle job is closed for him. iOL Christian Mahogany iOL Cade Mays iOL Tate Ratledge iOL Ben Bartch iOL Miles Frazier iOL Juice Scruggs i OL Seth McLaughlin iOL Melvin Priestly iOL Michael Niese iOL Mason Miller OL Colby Sorsdal I do like the depth here, and I think the Lions would be wise to keep as many of these players as they can. Barch and Scruggs are two experienced players who provide solide depth. Frazier will not only compete for the starting left guard spot, but he brings tackle versatility and has plenty of potential entering his first training camp (after missing all of last year’s practices). I’m not sure anyone else on the depth chart can realistically challenge for a starting position, but I am admittedly intrigued by Seth McLaughlin . It’s just hard to see him winning the backup center job after Detroit traded for Scruggs. EDGE Aidan Hutchinson EDGE DJ Wonnum EDGE Derrick Moore EDGE Ahmed Hassanein EDGE Payton Turner EDGE Anthony Lucas EDGE Eric O’Neill Three edge defenders sounds like a small amount, and I would have loved to find a place for Ahmed Has
[... truncated ...]
The Detroit Lions closed out Week 2 of OTAs with a short practice on Thursday afternoon in front of local media. While the day started with the awful news that fifth-round rookie receiver Kendrick Law suffered a torn ACL earlier in the week, Detroit did get some positive injury news on Thursday. After missing practice last Friday, both cornerback Terrion Arnold and tight end Sam LaPorta participated during the team’s sixth OTA session. Let’s do a full breakdown of attendance for Week 2 of OTAs: Not practicing/seen TE Miles Kitselman OL Ben Bartch S Brian Branch S Kerby Joseph Bartch has now missed two public practices in a row with an undisclosed injury. He was unable to finish his 2025 season with the 49ers due to a foot sprain. It’s not known if that’s what he is currently dealing with at the time of this publishing. Kitselman, an undrafted rookie, was not seen on the practice field after practicing last week. Branch and Joseph continue to miss practices, as expected. Prior to practice, Dan Campbell provided an update on Joseph’s condition , reiterating that they are purposely holding him back, waiting to see how his knee will react to on-field work during training camp. “It’s not worth it right now. We’re just slowly building, continuing to strengthen there,” Campbell said. “He’s getting treatment; he’s done some of these different things in different places to try and help. So I feel good about that. I feel good about that we’ve done everything we can and so has he. So we won’t know. Honestly, we probably won’t know until we get into the thick of training camp.” Returned to practice : TE Sam LaPorta (limited) TE Zach Horton CB Terrion Arnold (limited) LaPorta and Arnold both participated in about 30 minutes of walkthroughs to begin practice. When the team then transitioned to individual and positional drills, both players headed for the locker room. That’s a huge step for LaPorta, who finished last season on injured reserve with a back injury that required surgery. While it’s not a complete surprise that he’s back—coach Dan Campbell noted he had participated in walkthroughs and jog-throughs earlier this offseason—it’s a great sign that he could be ready to go to start the season. A little less is known about Arnold’s condition. He did end last season sidelined with a shoulder injury. It’s unclear if that’s why the Lions are being cautious with him or if it’s another injury he’s dealing with. There’s no public information about Horton’s absence last week, but his return is good news for a player that will be fighting for a roster spot in a competitive tight end room
The Detroit Lions completed Week 1 of OTAs on Friday afternoon with a practice just short of two hours long. Prior to practice, coach Dan Campbell warned that “a lot of guys” won’t be practicing out of precaution, but when the players took the field, Detroit was nearly at full strength. Outside of the players he specifically pointed to being absent —tight end Sam LaPorta , cornerback Terrion Arnold , and safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph —there were only two players missing: tight end Zach Horton and guard Ben Bartch . Let’s break down the entire participation report—which remains unofficial at this point in the season. This is just based on my observations. Did not practice: TE Zach Horton TE Sam LaPorta G Ben Bartch CB Terrion Arnold S Kerby Joseph S Brian Branch It’s unclear what Horton is dealing with. Last year, he spent most of his rookie season on the Lions’ practice squad, although he did log three offensive and three special teams snaps in the team’s regular season finale against the Bears. His absence, along with LaPorta, left the tight end room a little short. Just four tight ends were repping on Friday: Brock Wright , Tyler Conklin , Thomas Gordon, and Miles Kitselman. Speaking of LaPorta, Campbell gave a promising update on the Pro Bowl tight end. While he remains sidelined due to back surgery last November, LaPorta has been involved in some on-field work this offseason. “LaPorta has taken some walkthrough, jog-through, he’s done some of that, he’s not going to be out there today,” Campbell said. “But that’s not, listen, the most important thing is: continue to let them improve, rehab, all that. That’ll take precedence right now.” The reasons for Bartch’s absence are also unknown at this point. Bartch could be part of the competition for the starting left guard job, but with him sidelined, Christian Mahogany , Juice Scruggs , and Miles Frazier all took reps at the position during walkthroughs on Friday. Arnold’s absence, too, is a mystery at this point. Campbell let the media know before practice that he wouldn’t be there, but provided no details. The starting cornerbacks without Arnold in the lineup were D.J. Reed and Rock Ya-Sin . Campbell said that Joseph and Branch “are improving,” but provided no extra details. Joseph is dealing with a knee issue that has plagued him for nearly an entire year now, while Branch suffered a torn Achilles in December. Campbell said that missing time right now isn’t as important as getting healthy for both players. “The most important thing is: continue to let them improve, rehab, all that,” Campbell said. “That’ll take precedence right now. So, they’re in meetings, they’re getting the mental side of this, and just take it day-to-day.” It’s noteworthy, though, that Joseph was on the field in street clothes for the entirety of practice, helping distribute the ball for defensive back drills, and he was playing catch with an assistant on the sidelines as well. With no Branch or Joseph, it was mostly Christian Izien and Chuck Clark at starting safety, although Avonte Maddox also subbed in
You're caught up — end of feed.
Data comes from cached Sleeper and KTC snapshots. Values update when the sync jobs run.
