Roster Moves - Lions/Dolphins

Juggling the 53-man roster can be tricky. Where do you bulk up? Where do you take chances? One day before their Sunday afternoon matchup in South Beach, the Detroit Lions have added linebacker help while the Miami Dolphins’ kicker decision still bears watching.

Detroit’s roster work this week came with an obvious priority – more help at linebacker. The Lions signed K.J. Britt and Joe Bachie to the active roster Wednesday, one day after placing Jimmy Rolder on injured reserve. Those moves put fresh options into a position group that will face Miami without Jack Campbell, who is out with a neck injury.

Dolphins Plugging Holes

For the Dolphins, the transaction watch is less dramatic but still worth keeping open. Yahoo Sports’ latest Miami log lists kicker Zane Gonzalez and edge rusher Max Llewellyn back on the practice squad November 2. That follows their October 31 elevations for the New England game. It does not establish that either player has been elevated for Detroit.

Lion Linebackers

Detroit also signed linebacker Owen Pappoe to its practice squad Wednesday. On Tuesday, the Lions waived safety Bishop Fitzgerald alongside the move involving Rolder. Those are the November 2–7 entries currently shown in Detroit’s official transaction log: two active-roster linebacker additions, one practice-squad signing, one injured-reserve placement and one waiver.

Miami has a separate reason to monitor its edge depth. Malik Herring is questionable with a neck injury after limited participation throughout the practice week. If he cannot play, the Dolphins will need to settle their available rotation before taking on Detroit. That makes any later personnel announcement worth checking, not predicting.

There is also a difference between a quiet transaction log and a finished game-day roster. Miami’s available November entries currently stop with Gonzalez and Llewellyn on Monday. The reporting checked for this draft does not establish any subsequent Dolphins move. That is a limit on this roundup, not proof that the club will make none.

For Miami readers, the practical questions are straightforward. Who will be available to kick? How much edge depth will dress? And do Detroit’s new linebackers change the matchup once their roles become clear?