Last week against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Detroit Lions' inactive list read like a CVS receipt that just kept going. Atop that list was tackle Taylor Decker, who missed his second game in a row for Detroit as he was resting a shoulder injury suffered back in Week 1.
This week, the Lions are facing off with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for control in the NFC. Whoever walks away from this Monday Night Football bout with a win will be atop a conference, while the loser will find themselves in a back seat position. Detroit would be even further back if they lose, as they'd be 4-3 headed into their bye week and firmly third in the NFC North.
Decker's health for this one, as well as newly returned defensive tackle Alim McNeill's, was going to be critical for the teams' chances against a tightly-run Tampa Bay squad. In the Lions' inactive list ahead of Week 7, neither McNeill or Decker are featured. That's an excellent sign for a Detroit team looking for injury wins wherever they can find them.
Decker, McNeill good to go for Week 7 vs. Buccaneers
Here's the full inactive list for the Lions, courtesy the team:
Player | Injury |
|---|---|
Terrion Arnold | Shoulder |
Quinton Jefferson | N/A |
Kerby Joseph | Knee |
Avonte Maddox | Hamstring |
Jammie Robinson | N/A |
Sione Vaki | Groin |
Mekhi Wingo | N/A |
Decker and McNeill are back, but of course, the Lions are still struggling with major depth woes in their secondary. Arnold, Joseph, and Maddox are big losses on that front, and Detroit is still waiting on D.J. Reed to come back from his hamstring injury that landed him on the IR nearly four weeks ago. Brian Branch is healthy, but can't play tonight as he's serving a one game suspension doled out by the NFL after a Week 6 fracas.
READ MORE: Lions defense labelled as safe to bet against for MNF game vs. Buccaneers
For Tampa Bay, their potentially equal injury woes have seemingly resolved themselves:
Inactives for MNF ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/FrkMrC2n2N
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) October 20, 2025
Two notable names missing from this inactive list? Mike Evans and Emeka Egbuka, two wideouts that have been wreaking havoc against opposing defenses with Baker Mayfield leading the way. The veteran and rookie WR duo is sure to give Detroit fits if they aren't making the proper adjustments to account for the number of injuries they have at defensive back.
Detroit has a huge advantage with being at home and also seemingly motivated after a strange video posted by the NFL was basically mocking Branch for his fight with JuJu Smith-Schuster during Week 6. The home crowd has to be a factor for the defense if they want to even the table a bit against the high-flying, Mayfield-led offense.