The Detroit Lions are in their second day of full-pad practice as Training Camp continues in preparation for the upcoming 2026 NFL campaign, and already, they’re dealing with a multitude of injuries.
Unfortunately, that injury list appears to have grown larger thanks to the latest reports from Tuesday’s practice. Linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez departed with what is being described as an ankle injury as confirmed by Lions beat writer Tim Twentyman.
“The following players left practice early today to be evaluated for potential injuries. LB Malcolm Rodriguez (ankle),” Twentyman wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Selected in the sixth round (188th overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft by the Lions out of Oklahoma State, Rodriguez suffered a torn ACL in Week 13 of the 2024 season against the divisional rival Chicago Bears, ending his campaign. Before his injury, he’d appeared in 10 games and amassed 29 combined tackles with a pair of sacks and a fumble recovery.
As part of his physical recovery, he was limited to just seven games last season, during which he amassed 10 total tackles (eight solo, three assisted). During the offseason, the Lions re-signed him to a one-year contract, and they want him to play a larger role thanks to the departure of Alex Anzalone to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
So far in his NFL career, all with the Lions, Rodriguez has amassed 163 tackles with three sacks, three pass deflections, and two fumble recoveries.
Lions Suffer Yet Another Injury, This Time To Key Defender