Austin Bryant activated from PUP list, Lions place Darryl Roberts on IR

In addition to the activation of Matthew Stafford from reserve/COVID-19, the Detroit Lions made another roster move that could have an impact on Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings. Edge defender Austin Bryant has been activated from the Physically Unable to Perform list and is now eligible to play. To make room for him, the Lions placed reserve cornerback Darryl Roberts on injured reserve.

For Bryant, it will be his first opportunity to play in 2020. His rookie year was also shortened by a shoulder injury, but he showed some promise towards the end of last season. He made just four game appearances in 2019, but tallied eight tackles.

With Trey Flowers now on injured reserve, Bryant may get some playing time right away. However, the recent addition of Everson Griffen likely means Detroit will ease Bryant into the game.

As for Roberts, he suffered a new hip/groin injury last week and was limited in practice from Wednesday through Friday. That seems to suggest his injury is not too serious, but the move to IR forces Roberts to miss the next three games. With Justin Coleman returning from his own injury last week, the Lions are set at nickel cornerback for this week, but their depth could be an issue if anything happens to Coleman.

The Lions also made one more roster move on Saturday, promoting guard Marcus Martin from the practice squad. This is likely a move to give Detroit some depth on the offensive line, as Joe Dahl was declared out earlier in the day. Martin hasn’t appeared in an NFL game since 2016, but he started 24 games for the San Francisco 49ers from 2014 to 2016. He was mostly a center for San Francisco, but played both guard spots as well.