Giovanni Manu’s training camp situation took a sharp turn on Thursday, and the news is far more serious than the Detroit Lions first let on.
After Manu practiced on Wednesday and had already passed his physical, the team placed him on the Non-Football Injury list. That move immediately created confusion, but Dan Campbell cleared it up after Day 2 of camp: Manu had an offseason injury that was never disclosed to the team, and the issue flared back up after practice.
“We obviously put him on NFI. And he had an injury, a previous injury over the summer that was not disclosed,” Campbell said. “And so (he) came off the practice field, didn’t feel good, got it checked, sure enough, that’s what it was.”
Campbell said Manu is expected to miss about three months, putting the third-year offensive tackle in line to start the season on the PUP list and sit out at least the first four games.
“So, he will be out for a period of time. I don’t know how long that’s going to be; call it 12 weeks, 14 weeks. I don’t know, we’ll figure it out all down the road, but he is NFI,” Campbell said.
Manu wasn’t the only Lion sidelined Thursday. Jahmyr Gibbs sat out again, though Campbell downplayed any concern.
“At some point, it’ll all get done. It’s going to get done. I’m not even sweating it,” Campbell said.
With Gibbs out, Isiah Pacheco and Sione Vaki continued rotating with the first-team offense.
Tyler Conklin remained on the PUP list with a calf issue, and Campbell said he should be out two to three weeks, which points to a return around mid-August if nothing changes.
Christian Mahogany also stayed off the field after doing a heavy amount of work on the training hill Wednesday. Campbell sounded optimistic that he could be back soon, and Juice Scruggs kept working as the first-team left guard in Mahogany’s place.
Payton Turner missed practice with a back injury, but Campbell said the Lions don’t believe it’s anything major.
“He’s got a little bit of a stiff back, so just got that, but we don’t think that’ll be anything serious,” Campbell said.
The safety group also remained limited. Kerby Joseph was out after a demanding workout Wednesday, and while he spoke after practice, he didn’t give much detail on his recovery timeline.
“I’m super optimistic. I never gave up,” Joseph said.
“I’m always going to work hard. All I do is work!
If you see me outside, I’m working.”
Brian Branch stayed on the side and continued going through mental reps with the team, but he still doesn’t look ready for real on-field work with a trainer.
Christian Izien, listed with the flu on NFI, appears closest to returning. For the second straight day, he worked with a trainer while wearing a helmet and pads as he continues to work through the illness.
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