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The Detroit Lions made a pair of announcements involving injured players on September 6.
First, the team announced on its injury report that cornerback Emmanuel Moseley has been ruled out for the Week 1 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs.
#DETvsKC injury report presented by Henry Ford Health.
Also, the Lions announced they waived running back Jermar Jefferson with an injury settlement.
#Lions have waived RB Jermar Jefferson with an injury settlement.
Although both tweets were bad news for the Lions, the team should be pleased about its health heading into Week 1. Detroit is particularly deep at Jefferson’s position of running back.
CB Emmanuel Moseley Ruled Out for Season Opener
While disappointing, it doesn’t come as a huge shock that the Lions will be without Moseley against the Chiefs.
Moseley hasn’t played since Week 5 of last year because of a torn ACL. The knee rehab prevented him from also playing at all during the preseason.
The Athletic’s Colton Pouncy called Moseley’s status as out for the game, “not surprising” on Twitter on September 6.
Just a little more than a week ago, it was surprising that the Lions moved Moseley off the PUP list and onto the 53-man active roster.
Lions are moving CB Emmanuel Moseley off the Physically Unable to Perform List and he now will open the season on the active roster, eligible to play on opening day, per source.
Moseley was certainly excited about that news. He shared that excitement on Twitter.
“Stay down trust the process and let God work,” Moseley wrote on Twitter. “God did.”
But that hardly guaranteed Moseley would be active for Week 1.
In addition to Moseley, the Lions are expected to make veteran defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs inactive. Lions Wire’s Jeff Risdon speculated that safety Ifeatu Melifonwu will also be inactive, however, both Melifonwu and Buggs are healthy.
The Lions signed Moseley to a one-year, $6 million contract this offseason. Over five years with the San Francisco 49ers, he posted 162 combined tackles, including 5 tackles for loss, 33 pass defenses and 4 interceptions.
Once he returns, Moseley should be a major staple in the Detroit secondary. He played 96% of San Francisco’s snaps on defense in the first five games last year.
The Lions also signed cornerbacks Cameron Sutton and C.J. Garner-Johnson in free agency this offseason.
Lions Waive RB Jermar Jefferson
Shortly after ruling out Moseley, Detroit ended its relationship with Jefferson.
The Lions released the running back from injured reserve after agreeing to an injury settlement. He can now sign with any other NFL team.
Risdon left open the possibility of Jefferson returning to the Lions, but he called that “extremely unlikely.”
“He would have to wait at least three weeks beyond the end of the terms of the injury settlement before he can re-sign with the Lions,” wrote Risdon.
Jefferson didn’t play at all last season, as he spent the year on the Lions practice squad. In 2021, he posted 74 rushing yards and 4 catches for 23 yards in seven games.
Detroit selected Jefferson in the seventh round of the 2021 NFL draft.
Even if healthy, Jefferson would have a hard time carving out a role on this year’s Lions roster. Both free agent running back David Montgomery and first-round pick Jahmyr Gibbs will make their Lions debut against the Chiefs on September 7.
The Lions also have running back Craig Reynolds for depth and full back Jason Cabinda on the active roster.
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Lions Rule Out Starting CB for Week 1, Waive Injured RB