Fresh off lengthy injured reserve stint, Lions opt to keep Houston inactive vs. Buccaneers

Detroit — James Houston's return to action will have to wait at least another week. The Detroit Lions' second-year edge rusher had been added to the active roster from injured reserve on Thursday, but is inactive for Sunday's playoff game against the Buccaneers.

Lions coach Dan Campbell had strongly hinted at that possibility on Friday.

"Yeah, we still got to gauge if we feel like he will be ready," Lions coach Dan Campbell said ahead of Friday's practice. "I know this: He's better. He's a lot better this week than he was last week. That's the progression of it, right? Every week, he should start to get his legs back under him and feel good about it. We've got to decide if we really believe if he goes are we going to get the production relative to who we're sitting, for the rest of the team."

Houston hasn't played since Week 2, when he suffered a broken ankle covering a kickoff. As a rookie in 2022, he was a revelation, producing eight sacks in seven games following a midseason call-up from the practice squad.

In addition to Houston, the Lions made six others inactive for the divisional playoff game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Cornerback Steven Gilmore, defensive end Charles Harris, quarterback Hendon Hooker, wide receiver Kalif Raymond, defensive tackle Brodric Martin and safety Tracy Walker.

Raymond had been ruled out earlier in the week with the knee injury he suffered in the regular-season finale. The others, including former captain Walker and current captain Harris, are healthy scratches.

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As he has been since his activation off the physically unable to perform list, Hooker is listed as the team's emergency quarterback. If starter Jared Goff and backup Teddy Bridgewater were both knocked from the game with injuries, the rookie Hooker would be permitted to enter the game.

jdrogers@detroitnews.com

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