Detroit Lions injury update: Emmanuel Moseley could ‘catch up pretty fast’

The Detroit Lions made a mildly surprising move prior to their 53-man roster cutdowns. Despite suffering a setback from his torn ACL recovery near the start of training camp, cornerback Emmanuel Moseley was activated from the Physically Unable to Perform list on Tuesday. The move makes Moseley—one of the team’s biggest free-agent signings—eligible to play and practice immediately.

Of course, given that Moseley has missed all of training camp, it is far from a guarantee that he will even be ready for Week 1. In fact, there’s no clear evidence the Lions prefer Moseley to currently-slated starter Jerry Jacobs.

Coach Dan Campbell, though, provided a pretty optimistic update on Moseley’s status, noting that he’ll practice with his teammates for the first time on Friday.

“We just have to take it as it comes. He’ll get his first work with all of us out there today and then he’ll get a little bit tomorrow,” Campbell said. “It’s tough for me to say right now, but he’s progressed well. It’s a credit to him. He’s put a ton of work into it, he’s a grinder and what bodes well for him is he’s smart. He’s played the game and he’s pretty instinctive and so he can—I think he’s got a chance to catch up pretty fast. Does that mean (he’ll play) this week? I don’t know, but we’ll just take it as it comes.”

This offseason the Lions signed Moseley to a one-year, $6 million deal in the hopes he could provide some short-term help to a secondary that struggled last season. Moseley had previously spent five seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, four of which were as a regular starter. In 2021, Moseley enjoyed his best season to date, allowing just a 72.1 passer rating when targeted and earning a PFF grade of 68.7. He was on his way to an even more impressive season in 2022 when he tore his ACL in Week 5 of the season.

The Lions will need as many hands on deck as they can get for Thursday’s season opener against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. Detroit’s first official injury report of the season is expected later this weekend.