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Detroit Lions injury updates: Kerby Joseph won't play; Juice Scruggs back at center?
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- Detroit Lions injury updates: Kerby Joseph won't play; Juice Scruggs back at center?
Kerby Joseph will not make his long-awaited return this week against the Miami Dolphins , and the Detroit Lions may soon have a decision to make at center.
Lions coach Dan Campbell said in his weekly interview Tuesday, Nov. 3, on 97.1 The Ticket (WXYT-FM) that Joseph will need at least another week before the team is ready to activate him off the physically unable to perform list.
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"He's not going to play this game," Campbell said. "I know that [question] is coming. He's not playing versus Miami, he's just going to get some reps in practice."
Detroit lions safety Kerby Joseph hangs out on the sidelines before the N.F.L. game began at Ford Field in Detroit, Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026.
Joseph has not played since last Oct. 12 because of a cartiledge condition in his knee.
He returned to practice on a limited basis last week , when he took part primarily in individual drills and declined to offer a timetable on when he hopes to appear in games.
Campbell said last week Joseph still was in the "infant stages" of his return-to-play protocol. He said Tuesday that Joseph likely will progress to taking some scout-team reps in practice this week.
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The Lions travel to Germany next week to face the New England Patriots and have until the following week's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to activate Joseph to the 53-man roster or keep him on PUP for the rest of the season.
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Center of attention
The Lions are preparing to start Juice Scruggs at center against the Dolphins after Cade Mays left last week's win over the Minnesota Vikings with an ankle injury.
Scruggs played well as a fill-in starter the first five games of the season while Mays was out with a broken wrist. Mays returned to start the past two weeks in wins over the Vikings and Green Bay Packers , but he injured his ankle late in the first half against the Vikings and the Lions had 164 of their 230 yards rushing in the second half with Scruggs on the field.
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Campbell sidestepped a question about whether the Lions (5-2) have a competition brewing at center but acknowledged Mays' injury could impact the plans this week.
"I can't say that right now," Campbell said. "I mean, look, Cade has got this ankle right now. What I would say is that Juice came in and played very well. That's what I would definitely say. I mean, Juice, to be able to – he took some mental reps this week, he got a couple live, but really it was more of the mental at center, and to get thrust back in there against that defense, with everything they were doing and to have the production, I mean, it was impressive."
Mays is not expected to practice Wednesday, and Campbell said he could be out Thursday as well "so we're going to get Juice ready to go here."
"We love Juice, and he just fits us and he's all about business," Campbell said. "He's a great teammate, he's high energy. He just finishes plays, runs off the football, so he did a heck of a job, and as of right now, he's our guy."
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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: Detroit Lions injury updates: Kerby Joseph won't play; Juice Scruggs back at center?
