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The Detroit Lions returned from their open date

    • 297 posts
    November 12, 2018 9:16 AM EET

     with a significant injury announcement.Jamal Agnew 4Stephon Gilmore Jersey , who earned All-Pro honors last season as a rookie punt returner, was put on injured reserve with a knee problem. The Lions announced the move Monday, although coach Matt Patricia doesn't seem to be ruling out the possibility of Agnew returning this season."We'll just go through the process with it," Patricia said. "That's the good thing about that kind of designation is we have options. If we get to that point where we can expedite him or use him, then we'll try to do that."What's clear for now is that the Lions will be without Agnew for a while, and their season could hinge on what happens in these next few games. Detroit (2-3) recovered from a terrible start to the season with victories over Tom Brady and New England and Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay.But those two wins came at home. Now the Lions play three of their next four games on the road — and their next seven are against teams currently at .500 or better.Detroit plays at Miami this weekend."I've always had battles with this team," said Patricia, a former New England assistant. "They definitely play tough, they play real tough at home. This is a grueling team to play at home. Obviously Deatrich Wise Jr Jersey , they do a great job down there. They use the crowd noise to their advantage."Agnew returned two punts for touchdowns last season. He's averaged only 5.6 yards per punt return this season but has also returned six kickoffs for an average of 27.8 yards.Agnew also plays cornerback and has even contributed a bit on offense for the Lions."He's obviously a very valuable player to our team. Really can do a great job of turning field position, does a great job when he's out there at gunner, plays defense," Patricia said. "So, a pretty multiple, versatile player for us. But that's the nature of the game. We have guys that are going to have to step up and fill those roles whether it's one person or multiple guys. We'll just try to put the best guy out there that we can."Running back Ameer Abdullah has been listed as the backup returner for Detroit, behind Agnew.The Lions actually had a better record on the road (5-3) than at home (4-4) last season, but they've dropped their first two games away from home in 2018. Miami is 3-0 at home this season, including an overtime win over Chicago on Sunday in 89-degree weather."I think as you can see as the games go on down there Authentic Rob Gronkowski Jersey , the teams in the end — conditioning will be a big part of the game," Patricia said. "They're fortunate that they have that nice shaded sideline down there for their home team, so we're going to be in the heat for the entire game."We're going to have to deal with that as we go through. But it will be part of practice this week, just getting ready to go from the mentality of: We're going to have to play 60 minutes against a really tough football team down in their environment."NOTES: Lions CB Nevin Lawson went to high school in the Miami area and expects to have plenty of supporters in the crowd this weekend — although he said he wasn't about to become everybody's ticket broker. "I tell them just go on StubHub and you get all the tickets you want," Lawson said. ... The Lions signed LB Trevor Bates to the active roster from the practice squad. ... The Lions also announced that they have signed free agent linebacker聽Garret Dooley聽to the practice squad.Preseason week 4 Patriots vs Giants: Quick-hit thoughts on New England’s 17-12 victory in the preseason finale The New England Patriots defeated the New York Giants 17-12 in a rather slow and mostly uneventful preseason finale. The good news: the preseason is now over and the next time the Patriots take the field, the team will look a lot different – with the result hopefully more entertaining. With all that in mind, let’s still take a quick look back at the game.Danny Etling had some ups and downs – and one spectacular momentWith roster locks Tom Brady and Brian Hoyer both inactive, rookie Danny Etling was given the start at quarterback. His game looked mostly like the rest of his first NFL summer: he had his moments but in general struggled with inaccuracy, foot technique and feel for the pocket. Etling Youth Tom Brady Jersey , who completed 18 of 32 for 157 yards as well as a touchdown and two interceptions, also had the game’s signature play when he took a bootleg run 86 yards for a touchdown.Injuries could help decide roster battlesWhile the top of the depth chart appears to be mostly set across the board, the battle for the depth spots was still underway today. What may help the coaching staff make decisions is health, as multiple players had to leave the field at one point. While two returned quickly – linebacker Marquis Flowers and safety A.J. Moore were back shortly after exiting the game –, others ended the contest in the locker room: cornerback J.C. Jackson was carted off due to dehydration, offensive lineman Ulrick John injured his foot and was later seen in a walking boot. Jackson should be fine, but John’s roster outlook may have just taken a serious hit.Jason McCourty received more snaps at safetyDuring last week’s game against the Carolina Panthers, cornerback Jason McCourty lined up at free safety for the first time in his professional career. Today, he continued seeing snaps at the position. With the team set at the top of its cornerback depth chart – Stephon Gilmore and Eric Rowe are the starters at the perimeter http://www.patriotsauthorizedshop.com/authentic-devin-mccourty-jersey ;, Jonathan Jones and Duke Dawson appear to be the top options in the slot –, the versatility to line up elsewhere could play a big role in helping McCourty make the team.J.C. Jackson stated his case for a roster spotUndrafted rookie J.C. Jackson was named one of our players to watch before the game – and he certainly delivered a noteworthy performance. While not all was perfect, he was active in man coverage and finished the game with two interceptions before leaving it due to the aforementioned dehydration. It was nevertheless an encouraging performance for the cornerback, who was one of New England’s standout performers during training camp but so far did not live up to the hype during preseason.Players coming off injured reserve received plenty of snapsThree of the Patriots’ higher draft selections of the last two years spent 2017 on injured reserve: defensive linemen Derek Rivers and Vincent Valentine, and cornerback Cyrus Jones. All three were given plenty of opportunities today and played from start to finish. While this could be an indication that they are on the roster bubble, it appears to be more likely – at least in Rivers’ case – that the team simply wanted to give them as much exposure as possible after a year on the sidelines.Preseason is overThe exhibition contests are over and the next time we see the Patriots hit the field is September 9: New England will host the Houston Texans for its regular season opener. Over the next few days, roster cutdowns will decide who will be on the team.