The Detroit Lions will be without all four members of their starting secondary tonight in a Monday Night Football matchup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Lions will get back starting left tackle Taylor Decker after he missed the last two games with a shoulder injury and defensive lineman Alim McNeill, who is making his 2025 debut.
Cornerback Terrion Arnold (shoulder) and safety Kerby Joseph (knee) are inactive. They join cornerback D.J. Reed (IR) and safety Brian Branch (suspension) as starters in Detroit's secondary that are not available tonight against a Bucs' passing offense that ranks 21st in the NFL (231.3) coming in. Detroit's also without defensive back Avonte Maddox (hamstring) who is also inactive.
Amik Robertson and Rock Ya-Sin are expected to start at cornerback with Arthur Maulet and Tre Flowers in reserve. Maulet was signed from the practice squad to the active roster on Monday and Flowers was elevated from the practice squad. Thomas Harper, Erick Hallett and Loren Strickland are available at safety.
Decker's return is a big boost for a Lions' offense that comes in ranked second in scoring (31.8) and 11th in total offense (353.7). Decker allowed just one sack in the first four games of the season.
"You get Decker back it only helps us," Lions head coach Dan Campbell said Saturday. "Decker is a hell of a player and seen a lot of football and he makes guys around him better. Now you get that group back together, those five, and I think it will elevate us."
McNeill will be playing in his first game since tearing his ACL Dec. 15 in a loss to Buffalo. He's Detroit's best interior pass rusher and should give Detroit's front seven a big boost. The Lions will need their front seven to step up tonight and help stem their losses in the secondary.
Joining Arnold, Joseph and Maddox on today's inactive list for Detroit are running back Sione Vaki, safety Jammie Robinson, defensive lineman Quinton Jefferson and defensive lineman Mekhi Wingo.
