The Detroit Lions could be getting some reinforcements for their roster in time for the playoffs.
Lions coach Dan Campbell said Monday the team plans to open the practice window for safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and fullback Jason Cabinda to return from injured reserve this week.
Rookie quarterback Hendon Hooker also likely will be added to the roster when his 21-day practice window expires Wednesday, Campbell said.
“I think the plan’ll be to start C.J.’s clock,” Campbell said. “Probably start Cabinda’s clock, too. And I think we’re going to try to get Hooker on the roster.”
Gardner-Johnson, one of the Lions’ top free agent additions of the offseason, has been out since tearing his pectoral muscle in a Week 2 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, but Campbell said last week he was medically cleared to return to practice. Players can practice for up to three weeks before they must be activated from IR to the 53-man roster, or returned to injured reserve for the rest of the season.
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Gardner-Johnson could return to the lineup as soon as Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings, when the Lions can clinch their first division title in 30 years with a win. The Lions have gotten inconsistent play from their secondary in Gardner-Johnson’s absence, though Ifeatu Melifonwu has played well in starts the past two weeks at safety.
After Sunday, the Lions have two more games left in the regular season, on Dec. 30 against the Dallas Cowboys and in Week 18 against the Minnesota Vikings.
“He’s one of the X-Men,” Campbell said of Gardner-Johnson. “He’s got these mutant genes, because he has healed extremely quickly. And it is, he’s gotten the strength back, it is secure, and so yeah, he’s going to be ready to go here pretty soon.”
Cabinda, one of the Lions’ best special teams players, has been out since undergoing knee surgery in late September.
Hooker, who is recovering from the torn ACL he suffered last November in college, has spent the past three weeks practicing with the Lions, where he has taken part primarily in individual drills.
Hooker told the Free Press last week he had taken only a handful of scout team reps before games the past two weeks, but found the work “very, very, very” valuable to help him get acclimated to the NFL.
He also runs through a personal practice script after practices with veteran backup Teddy Bridgewater.
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“I can feel myself getting back into rhythm, actually being out there and throwing against the one defense,” he said. “Feeling the speed of the game feels good. Being able to throw to real targets and then guys just standing there, and then just competing.”
Hooker likely would serve as the Lions’ No. 3 quarterback once he’s activated, with Bridgewater as Jared Goff’s backup.
“He’s gotten just a little bit better every week, which is what you expect,” Campbell said last week. “Certainly he’s raw and he’s got a ton of things he’s got to get better at and develop, but that’s what you would expect, right? He’s a rookie, he hasn’t had any – he hasn’t banked any reps, anything like that in real-time. So we’re slowly working him in.”
