After a week of no practice for the Detroit Lions offensive lineman - typical for him - Taylor Decker has now been downgraded to doubtful for the Lions' road game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 5. Decker has been managing a painful shoulder injury for the last few weeks, but has somehow played through it.
Seemingly, Decker has hit his limit ahead of this potential trap game. The stalwart tackle seems set to miss this contest, possibly because of the fact that the Bengals aren't exactly as strong of competitors as the Kansas City Chiefs will be in Week 6. That's probably why Alim McNeill isn't suiting up just yet for Detroit despite practicing this week for the first time all season.
While Detroit will still have Penei Sewell holding things down on one side of the line, it seems like Giovanni Manu is about to see his snaps increase tenfold with this injury news on Decker.
Lions' Decker doubtful for Week 5 vs. Bengals
Decker was listed as a non-participant in practice for the last few days leading into this contest, but that's nothing new. He's been playing through a shoulder injury all season, ranking 41st amongst tackles this season on PFF with a grade of 63.6. He and Sewell are, once again, forming a pretty formidable pass protection duo for Jared Goff, who has reaped the benefits.
Without Decker, the Lions are likely set to turn to the services of Manu and Devin Cochran, a former Bengals tackle and a UDFA from back in 2022. The young tackle Manu has been impressing so far this season, and he looked good in the preseason for Detroit.
READ MORE: Taylor Decker is fighting through constant pain to remain in Lions trenches
Manu already could've been leaned on heavily as recently as Week 2, when he told reporters he'd be ready to step in for Decker against the Chicago Bears after Decker started to pop up on the injury report before that game.
"I'm totally ready, I mean, Taylor Decker is a (expletive) of a player. He's a mentor to me, but I've told myself this countless times. I've told people this, too, if I ever have my #59 called, best believe that I'll grab every moment of it, and I'll give it my all. And yeah, that's it. Seize the opportunity, right?"
Manu has to seize this opportunity, especially if this injury grows into a long term concern for Decker and the Lions. We should be getting an even better idea of who is missing this contest later this afternoon, with injury reports likely to come out around 3:15pm EST.