Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Out for season after IR placement
Rotowire
Rakestraw (shoulder) was placed on injured reserve Thursday.
Rakestraw will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery after being injured in practice this past Sunday. He will miss the entire 2025 season. The 2024 second-round draft pick appeared in eight games during his rookie regular season.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Expected to miss action
Rotowire
Rakestraw (shoulder) is set to be sidelined for an extended period of time, Justin Rogers of DetroitFootball.net reports.
Rakestraw suffered a left shoulder injury at practice Sunday, and appears to be looking at a prolonged absence. The exact nature of the injury has yet to be disclosed, while medical evaluation is still ongoing. "I think it's going to be a while, at best," head coach Dan Campbell relayed Monday, which is vague, but not promising. On the bright side, Rakestraw hasn't been placed on season-ending injured reserve, which seems to suggest that a return in 2025 is still on the table for the 23-year-old. In his absence, Amik Robertson will remain the clear front-runner to handle the starting duties at slot cornerback with Detroit this season.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Exits practice with shoulder injury
Rotowire
Rakestraw left Sunday's training camp practice early due to a left shoulder injury, Tim Twentyman of the Lions' official site reports.
Rakestraw landed on his left shoulder during a one-on-one tackling drill. It's bad timing for the 2024 second-rounder, who is working to establish a more consistent role for himself in the defense after ending his rookie season on IR due to a hamstring injury. Rakestraw will undergo further testing to determine the severity of the injury, but he is in jeopardy of missing the Lions' preseason opener against the Falcons on Friday.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Back in action Saturday
Rotowire
Rakestraw (chest) returned to practice Saturday, Colton Pouncy of The Athletic reports.
Rakestraw suffered a chest injury last Sunday, and just as head coach Dan Campbell predicted, he missed only a few days. The 2024 second-round pick played only 46 defensive snaps across eight regular-season games last season before finishing the year on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. Amik Robertson is expected to start at slot cornerback again this season unless Rakestraw can steal the job in training camp.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Expected to miss a few days
Rotowire
Coach Dan Campbell said Monday that Rakestraw (chest) is expected to miss just a few days, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Rakestraw suffered a chest contusion in practice Sunday, but the injury isn't expected to sideline him long. Once healthy enough to resume practicing, Rakestraw will continue to compete with Amik Robertson for the nickel cornerback spot.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Dealing with chest injury
Rotowire
Rakestraw suffered a chest contusion at the Lions' practice Sunday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Rakestraw was forced to exit practice early with an apparent chest injury, which is now understood to be just a contusion, avoiding a major injury. The cornerback was limited to eight games in his rookie season last year due to a hamstring issue, and he's competing with Amik Robertson for the team's starting role at slot cornerback in 2025.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Back in action
Rotowire
Rakestraw (hamstring) is a full participant in OTAs, Jimmy Liao of USA Today reports.
The cornerback missed the final two months of the 2024 campaign with the hamstring issue. In the eight games he did play, Rakestraw recorded six tackles (four solo) on 95 special-teams snaps and 46 defensive snaps. A 2024 second-round pick, Rakestraw could compete for a larger role in Detroit's secondary this year.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Designated to return from IR
Rotowire
The Lions designated Rakestraw (hamstring) to return from injured reserve Thursday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.
Rakestraw was placed on injured reserve in late November due to a hamstring injury. He's progressed enough in his recovery to return to practice, and depending on how his hamstring responds to on-field work, Rakestraw could be activated off IR and play in the Lions' divisional-round game. The rookie second-round pick logged six tackles (four solo) across eight regular-season games.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Won't play Week 3
Rotowire
Rakestraw (hamstring) has been ruled out of Sunday's game against the Cardinals.
Rakestraw wasn't able to practice all week due to a hamstring injury, and he'll have to wait until Week 4 against the Seahawks for his next chance to suit up. Kindle Vildor and Khalil Dorsey will serve as the Lions' backups at corner behind starters Carlton Davis and Terrion Arnold (illness).
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Won't play Sunday
Rotowire
Rakestraw (coach's decision) is inactive Sunday against the Buccaneers.
Rakestraw's absence from the active roster for Week 2 comes as a bit of a surprise, with the 2024 second-round selection expected to be an important depth piece of the Lions' retooled secondary this season. However, the Missouri product did play just three snaps on defense in their Week 1 win over the Rams and may need more development time to carve out a more consistent role.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Returns to practice
Rotowire
Rakestraw (ankle) participated in Tuesday's practice session, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com reports.
Rakestraw was forced to sit out of Lions' second preseason game against the Chiefs on Saturday due to an ankle injury he sustained in the week leading up to the contest. He appears to have healed from the injury, and the rookie second-round pick will participate in practices ahead of Saturday's preseason finale against Pittsburgh.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: Suffers ankle injury
Rotowire
Rakestraw had to leave practice early Monday after sustaining an ankle injury, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com reports.
Rakestraw secured two total tackles while playing 37 snaps with the defensive unit and 11 with special teams in Thursday's 14-3 preseason loss to the Giants. It's unclear what the severity of the ankle injury he suffered Monday is, but more information on his status will likely be provided in the near future.
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Lions' Ennis Rakestraw: On to the Motor City
Rotowire
The Lions selected Rakestraw in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, 61st overall.
This is a Dan Campbell-style pick, as Rakestraw is an extremely hard-nosed defensive back who doesn't rely on his athleticism to be an asset in the secondary. Aggressiveness and toughness help him as a tackler as well. Rakestraw is on the smaller side at 5-foot-11 and 183 pounds with 4.51 speed, though the film still kept him on the second-round radar. The Lions now have a young and tough secondary with Terrion Arnold and Brian Branch as recent additions over the last two drafts.
