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With injuries piling up at the offensive tackle position, the Detroit Lions have made a move to add extra depth. Specifically, they decided to go ahead and sign offensive tackle Barry Richardson on Tuesday.
Richardson joins the Lions after starting all 16 games for the St. Louis Rams in 2012. Before that, he started all 16 games in both 2010 and 2011 for the Kansas City Chiefs, which drafted him in the sixth round in 2008. More recently, Richardson was with the Tennessee Titans this past summer, but they released him in August.
The Lions signed Richardson because Riley Reiff, Corey Hilliard and Jason Fox are all injured. Reiff may be able to play this week, and Fox could potentially return after missing most of the season with various injuries. Hilliard is expected to be out, however, so the Lions needed the extra depth. (Richardson, by the way, received a +2.1 grade for his play in 2012 on Pro Football Focus. This was much better than his 2011 performance, which got him a grade of -28.6.)
It appears as though the Lions are planning to move tight end Tony Scheffler off their roster to make room for Richardson. Dave Birkett reports that Scheffler has been cleared to return from his concussion, but he could still go on injured reserve. If not, the Lions apparently are going to simply release him.