The Detroit Lions have been absolutely slammed by injuries for three straight years, and honestly, it’s brutal. You can tweak everything from practice habits to nutrition, but the only real shield against that kind of bad luck is having rock-solid depth. So, let’s rip into their 2026 depth chart for the 53-man roster and practice squad to see if they’ve learned anything from 2025, because early signs are NOT looking good.
QB Room: Worse, But With a Glimmer?
Alright, so you want to talk quarterback depth? Prepare for some tough news. In 2026, it’s Josh Dobbs and Luke Altmyer on the practice squad. Compare that to 2025 with Kyle Allen and C.J. Beathard. Is it better? Nah, not even close. Allen was clearly the superior backup; he got scooped up fast in free agency. Dobbs? He was cut this offseason and only landed somewhere in August. That speaks volumes, right? The silver lining, if you’re squinting hard enough, is Altmyer. He’s a developmental guy, showed enough promise to maybe stick around long-term. But for now, that QB depth is a step backwards, no doubt.
Running Backs and Receivers: A Real Head-Scratcher
If you thought QB was a step back, buckle up for the running backs. In 2026, it’s Sione Vaki, Jacob Saylors, and Jabari Small on the practice squad. Looking back at 2025, they had David Montgomery, Craig Reynolds, plus Vaki and Saylors. Yikes. Montgomery’s gone, and let’s be real, Pacheco being a downgrade and now missing at least four games? That’s a gut punch that even Vaki and Saylors improving won’t cover. The gap left by Montgomery is massive, and this group just ain’t filling it.
Then there’s the wide receiver depth, and honestly, it’s a mess. 2026 gives us Tay Martin, Tom Kennedy (PS), Lucky Jackson (PS), and Dominic Lovett (PS). That’s a bare cupboard compared to 2025’s Isaac TeSlaa (who played behind Raymond), Lovett, Ronnie Bell (PS), Kennedy (PS), and Jackson Meeks (PS). They went super light on wideouts, and it’s biting them already. Letting Kalif Raymond walk and hoping Greg Dortch would step up blew up in their face; Dortch didn’t even make the roster. And to top it off, a season-ending injury to rookie Kendrick Law would have helped, but without him, this depth is clearly not great. Let’s just pray the starters stay healthy, because there’s not much behind them.
So yeah, the Lions have a real challenge ahead of them. When your team keeps getting hit with the injury bug, and your depth takes a hit in key positions like QB, RB, and WR, you’re just begging for trouble. They’re going to need their core guys to be absolute ironmen this season, because from what we’re seeing, the backups might not be able to hold the fort if history repeats itself. It’s going to be a long season if these trends continue.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pride of Detroit.
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