Injury update: Jarrad Davis, Tavon Wilson, Travis Swanson return to Lions practice

Ever since the Detroit Lions defense got carved up by the Atlanta Falcons’ running game, fans have been waiting with baited breath to see if rookie middle linebacker Jarrad Davis was close to returning to the lineup this week. On Wednesday, they finally got some good news.

After missing all of last week with a concussion, Davis returned to practice on Wednesday, along with safety Tavon Wilson and center Travis Swanson:

We’ll know later whether Davis, Wilson and Swanson were full participants in practice when Wednesday’s injury report comes out, but this is a promising sign for all three starters that missed last week’s game.

For Davis, it’s a sign he’s nearing or has completed the NFL’s concussion protocol. The last step in the protocol is to complete full football activity, including contact without restriction. If Davis was a full participant on Wednesday, it means he has cleared through protocol.

As for Wilson, it’s almost certain he was limited in practice on Wednesday. According to MLive’s Kyle Meinke, he was wearing a red, no-contact jersey because of his shoulder injury.

But it wasn’t all good injury news for the Lions. Ezekiel Ansah was not at practice. He has been listed all season with a knee injury, but this is the first time he has missed a practice since the start of the year. Also absent from practice was starting right guard T.J. Lang. He’s yet to be a part of the injury report since the start of the regular season after rehabbing from hip surgery this past offseason. Lang has been held out of practice for rest reasons in the past, so that could explain why he wasn’t on the field today.

On the Vikings side, quarterback Sam Bradford was given Wednesday off, but it’s not clear if it’s injury related or just rest:

Bradford has missed the past two games with a knee injury.