For the first time since the early 1990s, the Detroit Lions won their division in 2023 and advanced to the NFC Championship game. It was a season straight out of a storybook. Even though they finally failed, there are a lot of hopes for the Lions going into the 2024 campaign. Fans will be enthused by defensive tackle DJ Reader’s latest injury report.
The Lions confirmed that Reader, who they signed in the offseason, has cleared his medical and is no longer listed as Physically Unable to Perform (PUP). Following a torn quad during a Cincinnati Bengals game in December of last year, he has been sidelined.
Young players like Brodric Martin will benefit greatly from having Reader back on the field. According to John Maakaron of Sports Illustrated, he once remarked that having a seasoned veteran as a colleague is similar to having an additional coach to pick up tips from.
It is similar to having a different coach who is currently in charge of it. It is something he is been doing for a while. After the preseason finale, Martin remarked, “Who has done it at a high level.” In essence, it was just having him there to lend a hand, asking questions, or sharing his knowledge about how to play particular blocks and other things. Without a doubt, having him around is a wonderful thing.
According to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, Reader recently discussed how excited he is to play in Detroit is season opener against the Los Angeles Rams and former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford.
He remarked, “That is just one of those things.” “I simply work every day to see where I am, and you kind of land where your feet land.” Thus, I am simply sort of in that world because I have not put on the pads like the other guys yet.
DJ Reader has played in more than 100 NFL games when he gets to Detroit.
Reader attended Grimsley High School before continuing on to Clemson University. He is a native of Greensboro, North Carolina. He played baseball and football in college before deciding to focus on football as his career.After being chosen by the Houston Texans with the 166th overall (5th round) pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, he played for them for the first four years of his career until agreeing to a four-year contract with the Bengals in 2020. Reader has started 96 of his 105 NFL games while totaling 277 tackles (149 solo) and 9.5 sacks.
