The Lions escaped New Orleans with a close victory, but Detroit lost one of its best defensive players in the win.
Defensive tackle Alim McNeill left the game on three separate instances and sought attention from trainers. It turned out to be worse than head coach Dan Campbell had hoped after the game. The Lions placed McNeill on the injured reserve list on Tuesday.
The team’s top interior player will miss the next four games at minimum, with just five regular-season games remaining.
The Lions filled McNeill’s spot on the 53-man roster by signing CB Kindle Vildor from the practice squad. As for the vacancy on the defensive line, Detroit officially added veteran Tyson Alualu to the practice squad. They also added offensive lineman Matt Farniok to the practice squad and released LB Raymond Johnson off the squad to make room.
