The Detroit Lions may have one less option at center entering the regular season.
In today’s preseason win over the Washington Commanders, reserve center Michael Niese went down with a right knee injury. He hobbled off, was carted to the locker room and did not return. Niese was later spotted on crutches in the locker room.
It could be a significant injury.
Lions vs Commanders Postgame Injury Report
— Jimmy Liao MD | Detroit Lions Morning Rounds (@JimmyLiaoMD) August 22, 2026
-Pretty healthy game for the Lions
🟢Jacob Saylors: Slow getting up on opening kickoff. Video benign. Stayed in.
🟢Christian Mahogany: Left ankle escapes roll-up sprain. Kept playing, should be fine.
🟡Cedrick Wilson: Lands hard on L…
Niese was expected to compete for the Lions’ starting center job to begin the regular season. He appeared on special teams for Detroit in eight games last year and also received 12 offensive snaps. He played in all 17 games in 2024.
Niese injury might have just sealed center competition
The Lions are looking for someone to fill in for Cade Mays, who suffered a wrist injury in early August that will sideline him for at least 8-10 weeks. It was a brutal blow for Detroit’s offensive line after the team made Mays its top free agent signing this offseason.
"We've got options," head coach Dan Campbell said of the Lions' center situation. "Listen, it's the hand you're dealt and you move on."
Detroit is now down an option. The center job could very well now be between three players: Juice Scruggs, Seth McLaughlin and Tate Ratledge.
Scruggs is the likely favorite. He’s made multiple starts at both center and guard in his NFL career. Acquired from the Houston Texans in the David Montgomery trade this offseason, Scruggs appeared in all 17 games last year but only made one start.
The year before in 2024, Scruggs started 13 games. He didn’t grade out all that well, but is still the most experienced option the Lions have.
McLaughlin is the dark horse for the job. He won the Rimington Trophy in college at Ohio State as the nation’s best center, but also ruptured his Achilles that offseason. He went undrafted and didn’t play at all last year for the Cincinnati Bengals before the Lions scooped him up in January.
McLaughlin is an interesting option, but the Lions probably don’t feel like he has the experience to start in Week 1. But if he can rebound from his injury, he becomes an intriguing part of their plans going forward.
Ratledge is not a center by trade, but Detroit has had him rep at that position in camp lately. For a young player still adjusting to the NFL, it’s not ideal to ask him to switch positions this early in his career.
He never played center in college, but briefly took practice snaps there in 2023 with an injury to Georgia’s starting center.
He’s probably not ready to play center yet, but showed some promise as a right guard in his rookie year. The Lions would be wise to not overwhelm Ratledge in year two.
Detroit’s center play was bad last season and contributed to an inefficient run game and poor pass protection. If the Lions want to return to the playoffs, they’ll need some better play from their interior offensive line.
Their avenues to get that better play may have just shrunk a little bit.
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