A world where the Detroit Lions are not in the postseason is a real possibility with five games remaining. At 7-5, the Lions must win four of their final five games to give them an opportunity to redeem themselves from a year ago. This is a very good football team that cannot get out of its own way. They are coming off a miserable loss to the Green Bay Packers on Thanksgiving.
Ahead of their Thursday Night contest against the Dallas Cowboys, the Lions placed rising star cornerback Terrion Arnold on injured reserve.
Reports right after this move shared that Arnold will now miss the rest of the season and will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery, Tom Pelissero reports.
In his second season with the Lions, Arnold has not been able to stay healthy. He missed four games earlier this season on two separate occasions after playing in 16 of 17 games during his rookie year.
Arnold ends his season with 31 tackles (23 solo), one interception, and eight pass deflections. He returned from his first injury against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 9 and made an impact with an interception, despite the loss. He did not play in the game against the Philadelphia Eagles or the New York Giants, but did return on Thanksgiving against the Packers. It was a rollercoaster of a season for the second-year cornerback.
The Lions are thin at the position. Amik Robertson, D.J. Reed, Rock Ya-Sin, and Avonte Maddox will be the core group to fill the role that Arnold had. This is a bad time to lose a cornerback as the Lions will take on the Cowboys, the Los Angeles Rams, and the Minnesota Vikings in three of their next four games. All of those teams have some of the best receivers in the game, between CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Puka Nacua, Devonte Adams, Justin Jefferson, and Jordan Addison.
The Lions could also be without star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown against the Cowboys this Thursday.
