Malcolm Rodriguez left Detroit Lions practice Tuesday, Aug. 4, to be evaluated for an ankle injury.
Rodriguez left the field under his own power late in training camp practice and walked to the locker room in Allen Park.
Rodriguez has worked as the Lions' first-team weakside linebacker for most of training camp and is the leading candidate to replace Alex Anzalone as the team's third linebacker.
The Lions return Jack Campbell and Derrick Barnes as starting linebackers, but are auditioning candidates on the weak side.
Rookie linebacker Jimmy Rolder, a fourth-round pick out of Michigan, suffered a severe hamstring strain in practice last week and could miss the start of the season. The Lions signed veteran Devin White the next day.
White has taken
a smattering of first-team reps the past two practices and Lions coach Dan Campbell said the weakside linebacker spot "suits him very well."
"[In Monday's practice there were] a couple of wow plays in there," Campbell said. "I mean, one, he just came downhill and just, that's what we expect. And he can still run, you can see that. So we just get his weight down a little bit and make sure that we continue to work him into practice, be smart with him. And then see where he can go with it. But it's an opportunity.”
A Pro Bowl player with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021 who finished third in the NFL with 174 tackles for the Las Vegas Raiders last season, White said he's not worried about winning a starting job with the Lions yet.
"They control all the depth chart things and whenever Ham [linebackers coach Shaun Dion Hamilton] tells me to go in, I just run out there fast as I can so he won’t put anybody else in, so that’s all that I’m trying to do," White said. "And I feel like if I just keep doing that and just stay humble, I feel like my role will increase and I’ll get better and better within the defense and I’ll help these guys make plays."
Defensive linemen Derrick Moore (groin) and Payton Turner (back) also did not practice Tuesday, and veteran guard Ben Bartch remains limited to individual drills as he works his way back from ankle surgery.
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: Malcolm Rodriguez leaves Detroit Lions practice with ankle injury
