Lions sign WR TJ Jones; Marvin Jones could miss Saints game
With leading receiver Marvin Jones battling a thigh injury that could keep him out of Sunday's game against the New Orleans Saints, the Detroit Lions signed wide receiver TJ Jones off the practice squad today.
Jones was limited in practice all week and listed as questionable on the injury report after moved cautiously while taking sporadic reps during the open portion of practice Friday.
He leads the Lions with 730 yards receiving on 42 catches, but has had a quiet November with just six catches in three games.
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Golden Tate, Anquan Boldin and Andre Roberts will be the Lions' top three receivers if Marvin Jones cannot play Sunday. TJ Jones caught 10 passes in 10 games last year and was one of the team's final cuts in training camp.
The Lions also activated defensive end Armonty Bryant off the commissioner's exempt list.
Bryant finished a three-game suspension on Thanksgiving, and teammates indicated this week that they expected him to be back in the lineup Sunday.
"He’s back now, so we’re exited," defensive end Ziggy Ansah said on Friday. "I’ve said previously before that the more good players we have on the team the better it is for us so we’re looking forward to what he’s going to do for us this week."
Bryant had three sacks in four games with the Lions after they claimed him off waivers from the Cleveland Browns earlier this year. He served a four-game suspension to start the season for violating the league's policy on performance enhancing drugs, and a second suspension for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy.
To make room for the Jones and Bryant on the active roster, the Lions waived running back Justin Forsett and cornerback Johnthan Banks, who they acquired in a trade deadline move from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Lions also re-signed running back Mike James to the practice squad.
Contact Dave Birkett: dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.