The Detroit Lions secured a dramatic 23-20 Thanksgiving victory over the Chicago Bears at Ford Field, improving to 11-1 on the season.
The win sets up a crucial matchup next Thursday against the Green Bay Packers, led by Jordan Love and Matt LaFleur.
However, the victory came at a cost, as several key defensive players sustained injuries. Defensive end Josh Paschal, defensive end Levi Onwuzurike, and middle linebacker Malcolm “Rodrigo” Rodriguez were all sidelined during the game.
These injuries add to an already banged-up defense under coordinator Aaron Glenn, which has recently seen players like Aidan Hutchinson, Marcus Davenport, and Alex Anzalone also dealing with setbacks.
Head coach Dan Campbell expressed particular concern about Rodriguez’s injury, calling it potentially the most serious among the latest setbacks. Lions beat writer Nolan Bianchi of The Detroit News reported that Campbell believes Rodriguez’s knee injury could be significant.
Paschal also injured his knee, while Onwuzurike suffered a hamstring issue. Campbell noted that Paschal and Onwuzurike might recover relatively soon but admitted, “Rodrigo’s the one I fear could be down for a while.”
