Lions Release DL, Two Placed on NFI

The Detroit Lions begin training camp practices Wednesday, and the final stage of their preparations was for veterans to officially report on Tuesday.

As part of the reporting process, the Lions placed several players on the Physically Unable to Perform list prior to the start of camp. After previously placing three players on the PUP list over the weekend, the Lions made more roster moves Tuesday.

The Lions released defensive tackle Jay Tufele and moved Christian Mahogany and Christian Izien to the Non-Football Injury and Non-Football Ilness lists ahead of the start of training camp practices.

Mahogany, an offensive lineman, and Izien, a defensive back, are both expected to be competing for starting jobs and the start on an injury list will set them back. Mahogany has been placed on the NFI Injury list, while Izien is dealing with an illness.

The Lions had previously placed safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph, as well as tight end Tyler Conklin, on the PUP list Sunday. Branch and Joseph missed all of offseason workouts while rehabbing injuries from last season, while Conklin suffered an undisclosed injury in OTAs that caused him to miss the remainder of the workouts.

In the past, the Lions have utilized this list for players nursing prior injuries or even for players who do not pass their initial conditioning tests. As a result, being placed on the active PUP list is not the largest cause for concern.

If a player is placed or transferred to the reserve PUP list, they must miss the four regular season games. Typically, the reserve PUP list is not utilized until cuts are made.

Detroit will play three preseason games prior to the start of the regular season, beginning with a showdown on Aug. 13 against the Cincinnati Bengals. They will host the Washington Commanders on Aug. 22, before rounding out the preseason with a matchup at the Indianapolis Colts on Aug. 29.

Final roster cuts trimming the roster from 90 players to 53 must be made by 6 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 30. This is a change from years past, as the NFL had previously set the deadline at the Tuesday following the conclusion of the preseason.