Jim Caldwell: Lions’ Kerry Hyder suffers significant Achilles injury

The only true goal of preseason games is to escape uninjured, but unfortunately the Detroit Lions were not able to do so during their matchup with the Colts on Sunday. Defensive end Kerry Hyder was banged up on the first-team defense’s second series, and he left the game immediately.

While information on what exactly happened was limited throughout the game, head coach Jim Caldwell gave an update during his press conference:

What exactly this means remains to be seen, but such strong language is not a good sign for the Lions. Hyder was a key contributor on the defensive line last season, and with limited options outside of Ezekiel Ansah at defensive end, Detroit will need to find production elsewhere.

Expect the organization to provide a further update early this week after they are able to assess Hyder’s injury more seriously. If he does have to miss significant time — which unfortunately looks like the case right now — there are no obvious candidates to take his place, giving the Lions under a month to scramble to find a replacement solution.