The Lions suffered another significant injury on defense Thursday.
An MRI confirmed that linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez suffered a torn ACL which will sideline him for the remainder of the season.
This season, Rodriguez started a total of six games for the Lions recording 43 tackles and two sacks. This all included being on the field for 49 percent of defensive snaps and 53 percent of special teams snaps in games played according to Pro Football Talk. Rodriguez was also slated to play a bigger role in Aaron Glenn’s defense after the team lost Alex Anzalone to a broken forearm a couple of weeks ago, however, that plan is obviously now scrapped with Rodriguez’s injury.
The Lions sign Kwon Alexander off of the Broncos’ practice squad
With injuries piling up on defense, the Lions signed former Pro Bowl linebacker Kwon Alexander off of the Broncos’ practice squad.
The former fourth-round pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers back in 2015, Alexander has had a good but injury-riddled career. After a Pro Bowl appearance back in 2017 with the Bucs, Alexander tore his Achilles during the 2020 season, was sidelined for a month in 2021 with an elbow injury, then tore his other Achilles in 2023. Still though, throughout his 10-year career, Alexander has played in a total of 90 games accumulating 639 tackles (54 for loss), 13.5 sacks, and 34 passes defended.
In three games with the Broncos this season, Alexander totaled eight tackles, forced one fumble, and recovered one fumble. The 6-foot-1, 227-pound linebacker who is pretty comparable to Rodriguez also recorded a 92.5 PFF grade in Week 9 against the Baltimore Ravens.
