The Detroit Lions have withstood several injuries to their defense over the first 12 weeks of the season, particularly at the linebacker position.
On Friday, another significant ailment hit the position. Linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez suffered a torn ACL and will miss the remainder of the season, according to reports. Rodriguez becomes the fourth player at the position to suffer a significant injury.
Alex Anzalone, Derrick Barnes and Jalen Reeves-Maybin are all already on injured reserve, and Rodriguez will join them in the coming days. As a result, there will be more opportunities available for Trevor Nowaske, Ben Niemann, David Long Jr. and Ezekiel Turner.
Rodriguez had carved out a starting role dating back to the knee injury suffered by Derrick Barnes in Week 3. He became even more prevalent in the defense when Alex Anzalone suffered a broken forearm in the team's win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 11.
Unfortunate news came back for Lions regarding Malcolm Rodriguez’s injury
—He will reportedly be out for season
— DetroitSportsPodcast (@DetroitPodcast) November 29, 2024
The Oklahoma State product showed little issue stepping up and filling the void left by the injuries, and had seven solo tackles against the Colts in Week 12.
“Well, that’s what I’ve been talking about each week in that linebacker room, and I continue to say that, that all those guys have played, all those guys deserve to play, and each week we try to put them in packages so they can play," said defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn prior to the Colts game. "So, if one guy goes down in that room, listen, the next guy’s going to step up.”
Anzalone was initially given a timetable of six-to-eight weeks for his return, while Barnes is expected to be done for the season. As a result, the linebacking corps has been further decimated.
In 2024, Rodriguez had totaled 27 solo tackles, two sacks, a fumble recovery and two tackles for loss.
The Lions have had a by-committee approach for the position in recent weeks, as Nowaske, Niemann, Long and Turner have each played plenty of snaps along with Jack Campbell. The second-year Iowa product has assumed the role of defensive play-caller in the absence of Anzalone.
Detroit next takes the field on Thursday, Dec. 5 against the Green Bay Packers at Ford Field.
