The Detroit Lions will be without running back Isiah Pacheco for at least the first four games of the regular season.
The Lions placed Pacheco on injured reserve Tuesday, Sept. 1, because of the back injury that kept him out of training camp most of the summer.
Pacheco sprained an MCL in his knee
in early August, but Lions coach Dan Campbell said last week the knee injury had healed and the running back was "touch and go" with a back injury.
He will miss games against New Orleans Saints, Buffalo Bills, New York Jets and Carolina Panthers. The earliest he can return is Oct. 11 against the Arizona Cardinals. The Lions have a bye the next week.
The Lions kept five running backs, including Pacheco, on their initial 53-man roster, and now will head into
the regular season with Jacob Saylors, Sione Vaki and Jabari Small as Jahmyr Gibbs' backups.
Saylors ran for 100 yards in last week's exhibition win over the Indianapolis Colts, and Campbell said after the game he was comfortable with Saylors as Gibbs' primary backup.
"I am," Campbell said. "I’m comfortable with those guys. And I just like the thought of having a guy in our system, think that's important. Knows our terminology, knows our guys, knows the protections. Just kind of knows it all, man. Understands our quarterback and how he thinks. I just think that's important."
Pacheco ran for 830 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2022 but has battled injuries the past three seasons. The hard-charging running back broke his fibula and missed 10 games in 2024 and sprained an MCL last year.
The Lions re-signed tight end Tyler Conklin to take Pacheco's spot on the roster.
They also added guard Elijah Klein and receiver Dominic Lovett to the practice squad.
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Lions RB Isiah Pacheco to miss at least 4 games, going on injured reserve
