Lions vs Cowboys Week 14: Final injury report & medical analysis

The Lions vs Cowboys game is finally almost upon us, which is a welcome distraction from all the turbulent news over the past week. From Frank Ragnow's re-retirement to Kerby Joseph's troubling knee to Terrion Arnold's shoulder surgery to the Lions dwindling playoff odds, time feels like it has slowed to a crawl since the last game way back on Thanksgiving.

It's like we've experienced time dilation while being stuck on that spaceship in Interstellar.

"I've waited years....

23 years, 4 months, 8 days."

Hopefully, no Lions fans have developed as much gray hair over the past week as that poor astronaut.

Lions 2024 draft class check-in

Before I get to the final injury report, many have been looking back on the health issues of the Lions 2024 draft class now that Terrion Arnold is out for the season.

So let's review to see where they are at...

• Terrion Arnold: Shoulder surgery and out for season. Should be fine for next season.

• Ennis Rakestraw: Shoulder surgery in preseason, which ended his season. Should be fine for next season.

• Gio Manu: After his first career start in Week 5, suspected to have hurt his knee in practice and has been on IR since then. No details.

• Sione Vaki: Currently active and playing on special teams. Missed 6 games earlier in the season for hamstring and groin injuries.

• Mekhi Wingo: Prolonged recovery from reported meniscus injury (November 2024) with surgery. Had follow-up scope in offseason. Played a lot of snaps in Week 2 which was his only appearance of the season, then a gameday inactive since. Lack of playing time could be performance-related, but residual effects from knee injury are possible.

• Christian Mahogany: On IR with suspected isolated fibula fracture. Expected back later this season and should be fully healthy for next season.

Lions vs Cowboys final injury report

Trends

• Penei Sewell and Kayode Awosika may have been hurt in practice.

• The Cowboys will be without starting OT Tyler Guyton along with starting CB Trevon Diggs. Jadeveon Clowney upgraded during the week and might be in.

Lions starters out:

• Out: Sam LaPorta, TE

• Out: Christian Mahogany, LG

• Out: Terrion Arnold, CB

• Out: Kerby Joseph, S

• Possibly out: Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR

• Likely in: Graham Glasgow, C

• Likely in: Penei Sewell, OT

(NP - no practice, LP - limited practice, FP - full practice)

DETROIT LIONS

OUT - Kerby Joseph, S (left knee) starter

Joseph will miss his 7th straight game. The early week LP was great news as it was his first practice in many weeks. However, it was followed up with 2x NP which is notable considering Dan Campbell and Joseph himself expressed long-term concerns earlier in the week. The NP's puts next week in doubt as well.

OUT - Brock Wright, TE (trachea)

Wright has missed 1 game due to this injury. No surprise that he's missing another game. Back in 2020, Ragnow missed 2 games with a possibly similar injury. It's good news that Wright has not been placed on IR yet.

OUT - Shane Zylstra, TE (knee)

He was hurt way back in Week 2 after getting rolled up on. His 21-day window opened Monday. The 2x NP to finish the week is not a good sign after missing the past 2.5 months.

OUT - Kalif Raymond, WR (left ankle)

On video, Raymond is suspected to have suffered a left high ankle sprain 2 games ago. He missed the last game and is still seen wearing a walking boot at home. Next week vs the Rams is a possibility though.

QUESTIONABLE - Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR (right low ankle sprain)

St. Brown had a right low ankle sprain based on video and reporting from Tom Pelissero. Rest is far more important than practice when returning from a low ankle sprain. Thus the 3x NP does not necessarily rule him out for Thursday. The importance of the Cowboys game could be a motivating factor along with the 9 days of rest he'll have afterwards.

QUESTIONABLE - Brian Branch, S (toe/ankle) starter

Branch is still battling through a suspected right big toe injury. He appeared to aggravate it a couple of games ago vs the Giants.

Last game vs the Packers, he looked very healthy and I expect him to be in.

QUESTIONABLE - Penei Sewell, OT (shoulder) starter

It's presumed this shoulder was hurt or aggravated in practice, but we don't know for sure. It's great news that he had an LP to end the week, which means it's nothing too serious. The LP has him leaning in.

He did have a mild left shoulder injury on November 2, which he has been playing through without obvious disability. The relation is unknown.

QUESTIONABLE - Kayode Awosika, OG (foot)

Awosika is presumed to have hurt his foot in practice, which makes the severity unknown. The questionable designation (vs doubtful/out) is reassuring that it's nothing long-term. However, the end-of-week NP has him leaning out.

QUESTIONABLE - Taylor Decker, OT (right shoulder) starter

Decker almost certainly will start his 7th straight game.

QUESTIONABLE - Graham Glasgow, C (knee) starter

Glasgow hurt his left knee back on November 16. It's uncertain if that's the injury he's currently dealing with.

He missed the last game but is trending in for Thursday with 3x LP. It may come down to how the Lions feel about Trystan Colon's performance last week, as well as Awosika's status.

QUESTIONABLE - Sione Vaki, RB (thumb)

Vaki played through this thumb last game without issue, so he's likely in.

PUP/NFI

• Alim McNeill, DT (ACL) - Returned to play Oct 20 (Day 20 of window)

• Malcolm Rodriguez, LB (ACL) - Returned to play Nov 23 (Day 27 post window)

• Josh Paschal, EDGE (back) - Window opened Nov 5. He was not activated, which ends his season.

• Miles Frazier, OG (knee) - Window opened Nov 5 and currently on 53-man roster.

IR (injured reserve) - eligible to return this season

(Rules recap: There is no limit to the number of players that can be placed on IR. Must stay on IR for a minimum of 4 games. Only 8 are allowed to return during the regular season, plus bonus 2 for the playoffs. Last season, the Lions used 7 returns during the regular season and 1 during the playoffs.)

Eligible return dates:

• Week 11 vs Eagles (Nov 16): Giovanni Manu

• Week 12 vs Giants (Nov 23):

• Week 13 vs Packers (Nov 27): Zach Cunningham

• Current Week 14 vs Cowboys (Dec 4): Christian Mahogany

• Week 15 vs Rams (Dec 14): Sam LaPorta

• Week 16 vs Steelers (Dec 21):

• Week 17 vs Vikings (Dec 25)

• Week 18 vs Bears (TBD): Terrion Arnold

IR returns: 5 - Zylstra, Thomas, Reed, Davenport, Dorsey

IR players:

• Terrion Arnold, CB (right shoulder, Dec 1) - Right shoulder surgery and out for season.

• Sam LaPorta, TE (back, Nov 9) -  Unspecified back surgery and almost certainly out for the season.

• Pat O'Connor, DT (knee, Nov 2) - Placed on IR Nov 14, then released on Nov 15.

• Christian Mahogany, OG (suspected left fibula fracture, Nov 2) - This fracture is not necessarily season-ending. He has a chance to return in December.

• Zach Cunningham, LB (hamstring, Oct 20) - In his first game back from a hamstring first suffered at the end of September, he presumably injured it again.

• Giovanni Manu, OT (knee, Oct 9) - Presumably hurt himself in practice. On Nov 5, Dan Campbell stated: "Gio's still a few weeks out. I don't see us starting him within the next week or two."

• returned Khalil Dorsey, CB (wrist, Oct 3) - Returned to play Nov 23 (Day 4 of window)

• returned DJ Reed, CB (left hamstring, Sep 28) - Returned to play Nov 23 (Day 12 of window)

• returned Daniel Thomas, S (forearm fracture, Sep 22) - Returned to play November 9 (Day 14 of window)

• returned Marcus Davenport, EDGE (right pec strain, Sep 14) - Returned to play Nov 27 (Day 16 of window).

• returned Shane Zylstra, TE (suspected right high ankle sprain + knee, Sep 14) - His window opened on Dec 1.

• Jamarco Jones, OT (ankle, Sep 4) - Eligible to return anytime, but was ruled out for season.

• Ezekiel Turner, LB (Achilles, Aug 23) - Eligible to return anytime but suspected to not be returning. Note: there is uncertainty whether Turner was actually designated eligible to return on the cutdown date.

IR - NOT eligible to return this season (key players listed)

• Ennis Rakestraw, CB (shoulder)

• Levi Onwuzurike, DT (ACL)

• Kenny Yeboah, TE (unspecified)

• Colby Sorsdal, OG (leg)

• Justin Herron, OT (arm)

• Dan Jackson, S (leg)

This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Lions vs Cowboys Week 14: Final injury report & medical analysis