The Detroit Lions will be without several names when they take on the Minnesota Vikings at Ford Field in Week 8, but cornerback Roger McCreary is set to go after entering Friday as questionable.
Detroit had already ruled out safety Kerby Joseph, who was limited in practice throughout his first week back in action. On the final inactive list, the Lions also left out defensive end Ahmed Hassanein, defensive lineman Mekhi Wingo, safety Bishop Fitzgerald, offensive lineman Seth McLaughlin and tight end Jackson Meeks.
The team did not elevate anyone from the practice squad for the game.
McCreary’s availability gives Detroit a bit of a boost on the back end, while the rest of the inactive group leaves the Lions short in a few spots across the roster.
Ahead of the divisional matchup, Dan Campbell had plenty to say about what Minnesota brings to the table.
"Minnesota, playing outstanding football. Kevin (O'Connell)'s doing a hell of a job.
(Vikings defensive coordinator) Brian (Flores)'s doing a hell of a job. This thing, they play very complementary football.
Everything is fueled by this defense," said Campbell. "That's the starting point.
This defense is as good as it gets. They fly around the football.
They're smart. I think eight out of these 11 starters for the most part are veteran guys, they're seven years or older and they've been in this system with Flores."
Campbell also pointed to the way Minnesota moves pieces around and creates problems for offenses before the snap and after it.
"The versatility between (Linebacker Blake) Cashman and (Outside linebacker Andrew) Van Ginkel and (Safety Joshua) Metellus and (Safety) Harrison (Smith) and (Linebacker Eric) Wilson just allow them to do a lot. (Outside linebacker) Dallas Turner on the perimeter, (Defensive lineman Jalen) Redmond in the middle among others, they work well together," said Campbell.
"And obviously the corner's outside there, (Byron) Murphy (Jr.) and (Isaiah) Rodgers and they roll those other ones. But they understand the system.
"They understand where they're going to exploit you at and then where you're trying to, 'Okay, this is where my outlet is.' They take that away too," Campbell added.
"They exploit you and then take away your outlet. They're very good at it and they just create havoc and chaos.
And inevitably what they want, and have done consistently, is they force you to make massive errors. It's one thing to get stops.
They're forcing offenses, at the end of the day, it gets late. This is a tight game and it's just wave after wave."
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Miami has been leaning into youth, cutting veterans and bringing in a wave of rookies, which has made the first part of the season uneven. The results have mostly been rough, but the Dolphins have shown some signs of life lately, including a close loss to the New England Patriots, and that kind of progress can make an early November test a little trickier than expected for a Lions team trying to keep its footing. [Read more 🡒]