Among the many roster changes made by the Detroit Lions, safety Ifeatu Melifonwu’s activation from injured reserve stands out. Despite being officially listed as questionable to play against the Chicago Bears on Sunday, Melifonwu’s activation suggests that he will play for the first time this season. Even though Melifonwu has been battling a finger and groin injury all season, his return will improve Detroit’s secondary, especially since starting cornerback Carlton Davis will be out for the remainder of the campaign. The Lions decided to make a few more roster moves using Alexander’s roster spot, so they will need a new punt returner this week. Joseph’s gesture serves as additional evidence that Melifonwu will be operational on Sunday.
Both players are subject to the waiver wire, so don’t be shocked if they return to the 53-man roster or practice squad early next week. Kennedy has played in two games this season and appears to be headed for a third. He can help on special teams and is a strong candidate to be the team’s punt returner this week. Detroit’s beat-up defensive line, which will be without Aidan Hutchinson, Marcus Davenport, Derrick Barnes, and Alim McNeill for the remainder of the regular season, will likely see some major changes without Khalil Dorsey. Agude has a strong preseason but has only made one appearance in his NFL career.
Don’t be shocked if Jefferson is the team’s third running back this week, behind Craig Reynolds and Jahmyr Gibbs, since the Lions have hyped up him a lot. Even though he hasn’t played in a regular season game yet, Jefferson has demonstrated a great deal of improvement on special teams this offseason.
Regarding Jefferosn, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson stated, “He truly deserves a chance here this week to show what he’s made out of.” When you watch him on scout team and observe how he goes about his work, you can tell that he’s virtually a silent assassin. He comes in, works, and you don’t even hear him speak at unit meetings.
