Detroit Lions offensive tackle Dan Skipper (70). Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Dan Skipper: 'Undo The Pin' on Lions' Voodoo Doll, Bad Injury Luck

Originally posted on Detroit Lions on SI
By Christian Booher | Last updated Aug 11, 2025 5:30 PM ET

Dan Skipper was watching his Detroit Lions teammates take on the Atlanta Falcons from the team facility when Morice Norris suffered an injury trying to make a tackle.

Norris left the field in an ambulence, which prompted the game to be suspended early after a mutual agreement between the two teams.

Unfortunately for the Lions, Detroit then placed three players on injured reserve following the game. For a team that struggled to stay healthy and at one point had over 20 players on IR last season, the hits simply keep coming.

Skipper had two of his fellow offensive linemen, Justin Herron and Colby Sorsdal, go on injured reserve Sunday along with tight end Kenny Yeboah. As a result, he asked for mercy from whomever possesses the Lions' voodoo doll.

"Mo, he's a great part of this team, and he's a great dude. Seeing him go down like that, and I'm sitting there like a fan. It started early in the game, we got a picture sent of Justin in an air cast," Skipper said. "That doesn't happen in warmups. Hopefully, whoever's got the voodoo doll on us can just undo the pin. This is unbelievable. Legs, and everything else this year, it's crazy."

Norris is currently in concussion protocol, but returned to the team facility on Sunday. His teammates were excited to see him, with Skipper making a quip about the severity of his injury. For the veteran offensive tackle, humor is a way to ease the tension that has come with seeing teammates deal with injuries.

"It was great. The first thing I did was go up and ask him how his nap was," Skipper said. "That's probably my coping mechanism, for better for worse, is humor. So, is what it is, but obviously super grateful that he's okay."

The veteran just returned to practice Monday after missing around a week with an ankle injury, which kept him out of the Falcons game. He praised the work of medical staffs across the NFL for their quick responses and the work they do, while acknowledging that these moments can be scary for players when teammates go down.

"If you're gonna get hurt, the best place to get hurt outside of a level 1 trauma center parking lot is an NFL field, and I think an NFL field might be better," Skipper said. "The training staff here, all the game day crews, all the red hats, they do a really good job. They're there. And we know that, it's always been like that. You know you've got them in your back pocket should that happen. Obviously the goal is for that never to happen. Luckily it doesn't happen all that often, but when you see someone ... it's scary s**t too."

This article first appeared on Detroit Lions on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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