After four weeks of not practicing, the Detroit Lions finally decided to place Ifeatu Melifonwu on injured reserve. He will now miss the next four games, meaning he’s eligible to return for Week 9 against the Green Bay Packers.
The Lions veteran safety has been dealing with an ankle injury all season, and while it initially looked like he may not miss much time—he was listed as limited in practice all of Week 1—indicating he clearly suffered a setback and has not been able to work his way back onto the field.
As recently as last week, coach Dan Campbell noted that they didn’t think they would have to resort to placing Melifonwu on IR.