Rookie linebacker Jimmy Rolder was back on the practice field Tuesday, Sept. 8, for the Detroit Lions after missing more than a month with a hamstring injury.
Rolder, the Lions' fourth-round pick, pulled a hamstring on the third day of training camp and missed the rest of the summer. He said in late August he was close to a return.
Rolder was one of several injured players the Lions got back on the field for the first full practice of the week ahead of their season opener Sept. 13 against the New Orleans Saints.
Safeties Thomas Harper and Christian Izien also returned from ankle and leg injuries, respectively, as the Lions had all 52 players on their roster on the field.
Lions safeties coach Jim O'Neil indicated Harper could play in a safety rotation
with starters Chuck Clark and Avonte Maddox to start the season.
"Before he rolled his ankle and he missed the last couple weeks of practice, I thought he had his best week that third week of training camp," O'Neil said of Harper. "And he’s the safety that is really good in space when it comes to tackling. He can go get the ball on the deep part of the field, which is a rare characteristic. I think all three of them are really different. I think that they all are going to help us. I think that [defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard is] doing an awesome job of putting those three guys and putting packages in where they can be at their best and do what they do best."
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 injury report: Jimmy Rolder, Thomas Harper return to practice
