Allen Park — The Detroit Lions are dealing with enough injuries, so the team sees little reason to risk putting quarterback Jared Goff in harm’s way the final two preseason games.
On Thursday, discussing the plan for his starters for Saturday’s game with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Lions coach Dan Campbell noted Goff, as well as some other veterans, likely won’t play this weekend or next.
“I still see most of our starters playing,” Campbell said. “I’ll tell you this. This had been in my head for about a week. I’m starting to think about, you know, maybe sitting a few of these guys. A select few veterans is kind of what I’m thinking right now. I’m not there yet, I want to see how we get through this practice too. That will play a lot into it.”
If there was a practice that could get Campbell to reverse course on his thinking, Thursday’s session might have been the one. Goff had one of his shakiest days this offseason, throwing two interceptions and nearly seeing two other passes picked off by defenders.
Three players who almost certainly won’t play on Saturday, at least according to Campbell, are defensive end Michael Brockers, tight end T.J. Hockenson and running back D’Andre Swift.
Both Swift and Hockenson saw their practice activity ramped up Thursday, with Swift getting close to a full workload. Campbell said the goal is get Hockenson back to full speed next week.
Williams activated
The Lions got back defensive tackle Nick Williams on Thursday, activating the player of the COVID-19 reserve list. Williams tested positive for the virus 12 days ago, noting on Twitter he was experiencing only minor symptoms.
The Lions wasted little time getting him back into the mix, putting him out with the top defensive unit to start practice, until he suffered an injury that ended his day.
To make room for Williams, the Lions released tight end Hunter Thedford.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers