The Detroit Lions are officially placing running back Kerryon Johnson on injured reserve due to the rookie's ongoing knee injury.

Johnson has not played since the Nov. 18 matchup against the Carolina Panthers, as the former Auburn star injured his knee and seemingly hasn't been right ever since.

So, with the Lions struggling to a 5-9 record to this point in the season, it seems like they aren't all that interested in potentially causing further damage to Johnson's knee.

From NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport:

The Lions are shutting down RB Kerryon Johnson, source said. He’s going to Injured Reserve and should make a full recovery this offseason.

Johnson had 118 carries for 641 yards and three touchdowns during his rookie campaign, and he also caught 32 passes for 213 yards and a score.

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He put together two 100-yard games on the ground, with his best performance coming in a 32-21 win over the Miami Dolphins, where he racked up 19 carries for 158 yards.

There's no doubt that Johnson is a big-time playmaker that is only going to get better from here, but Detroit will need to continue to fix some of the weak spots elsewhere.

The Lions have had some bright spots throughout the season, and there's a decent nucleus that this team can build on for the future.

However, it's still about finding consistency across the board, and perhaps Johnson's return in 2019 will help with that.

But before entering an important offseason, Detroit finish up the year with back-to-back NFC North games against the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers.