Detroit Lions’ final 2025 IR, PUP, NFI summary
March 4, 2026, 6:15 p.m. ET
Over the past season on Lions Wire, I have maintained a regular update on the Lions IR/PUP/NFI lists. I recently posted to JimmyLiaoMD.com a final recap of those lists.
Here is an excerpt with the main takeaways and return-to-play data:
Detroit Lions 2025 IR (injured reserve) takeawaysThe secondary was hit extremely hard as all starters landed on IR (Joseph S, Branch S, Arnold CB, Reed CB), along with multiple reserves (Dorsey CB, Rakestraw CB, Thomas S, Jackson S). That’s eight secondary players in total who went on IR.In 2025, the Lions used seven regular-season IR-returns out of the maximum eight. Wright may have returned for Week 18 if the Lions were still in the playoff hunt. (In 2024, Lions used seven IR-returns during regular season and one during playoffs)The Lions did a good job managing the IR-return slots. The handling of Pat O’Connor was a creative way to avoid using a slot (released with injury settlement, then re-signed). The same could be said of Ahmed Hassanein (waive and re-sign).Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.Return-to-play data after window opened (Median 16 days)4 days – Khalil Dorsey (wrist)12 – DJ Reed (hamstring)12 – Christian Mahogany (fibula)14 – Daniel Thomas (forearm fracture)14 – Shane Zylstra (knee)16 – Marcus Davenport (pec/shoulder)20 – Alim McNeill (ACL)27 – Malcolm Rodriguez (ACL)30 – Miles Frazier (knee)did not return to play in 2025 season – Gio Manu (knee)did not return to play in 2025 season – Josh Paschal (back)
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