The Detroit Lions have a full-blown injury crisis on their hands for Week 14, and have been trying to take steps to mitigate trouble by making additions to patch holes-especially on the defensive side.
In the last few days, the Lions have added linebacker Kwon Alexander, defensive lineman Jonah Williams and Myles Adams and safety Jamal Adams. While some will join the active roster and play immediately, others will have to wait until their roles are decided.
Wide receiver Allen Robinson was a practice squad addition right before the season started. He was eventually signed to the 53-man roster, but he hasn't played a lot or produced much (two catches for nine yards). But he has relished the opportunity to do little things to help out.
"(We're) bringing in guys who've played a lot of football before, experienced guys. So (it's about) just being able to get them acclimated as quickly as possible. Being a part of that early, it was exciting. It's a great group of coaches, so they're able to feed you the knowledge and everything that you need to go out there and play fast and get up to speed as quickly as possible."
Robinson is a perfect example for players entering the fray for the Lions. The chance is there for a role, and no matter what is asked a player should be ready to contribute like he has.
Allen Robinson encourages new Lions to stay ready to help the team
Robinson knows the value of fringe roster players as well as those on the practice squad first-hand. With the unique situation the Lions are in, his message to those joining the team resonates as the regular season winds down and the playoffs loom.
"Whenever you're a part of a winning team, it's about being ready when your number gets called. We have a lot of good players, a lot of guys playing a lot of different roles, so when you're part of a team and continuing to try to cultivate winning and so on and so forth, everybody just prepares for when their number's called. Everybody doesn't look to see what's going on here, what's going on there. It's about staying ready. It's about getting ready and it's about being able to contribute and impact the winning."
All the players the Lions have added in recent days will get a chance to impact things in some way, and they can look no further than Robinson as an example.