Detroit Lions DT Da’Shawn Hand back in arm brace

There was an interesting development at this week of practice with Detroit Lions defensive tackle Da’Shawn Hand. He still remains quite limited at practice, not looking quite ready to take the field, but this week he is back sporting an arm brace for his injured left elbow.

Hand hurt his elbow in the first week of training camp and was immediately sporting a hefty brace. A few weeks later, he had shed his arm brace along the sidelines, and just a couple weeks ago, Hand returned to practice without the brace on at all.

It’s unclear exactly what the return of the brace signifies. On one hand, it could indicate a setback in Hand’s recovery, suggesting he’s still a few more weeks—if not, longer—away from returning to full health. On the other hand, it could mean that the Lions defensive tackle is getting closer to play and could be thinking about wearing a brace while playing.

It’s been over seven weeks since Hand injured his elbow, but his return date remains quite unclear.

Meanwhile, only rookie safety C.J. Moore was missing from Thursday’s practice as the Lions get ready for the Philadelphia Eagles this weekend.