Lions Expected To Activate Tyler Conklin From PUP Amid Tight End Injuries

What happened:

Watch the highlights:

The Detroit Lions are expected to remove veteran tight end Tyler Conklin from the physically unable to perform list, according to Yahoo Sports. The move comes after Detroit lost Anthony Firkser and Miles Kitselman to injured reserve, leaving the tight end room short on healthy options.

The source report is narrow, but the timing is important. A player coming off PUP does not automatically solve a depth chart problem, yet it does reopen practice and evaluation time for a team that has already taken multiple hits at the same position. For Detroit, Conklin's return would give coaches another veteran body at a spot where availability has quickly become part of roster management.

Why it matters:

Training camp and preseason roster decisions often turn on clusters of injuries rather than one headline absence. Losing Firkser and Kitselman to injured reserve changes the competition around snaps, special-teams value, and backup roles. Conklin's expected return gives Detroit a chance to stabilize the position before those decisions harden.

The key word is expected. The report says the Lions are expected to remove Conklin from PUP, not that he has already played, taken full work, or been cleared for every football activity. That distinction matters because PUP activation is a process marker, not a guarantee of immediate game workload.

Tournament impact:

For the NFL schedule ahead, this is a depth and continuity story. Tight ends affect more than receiving production: they matter in protection calls, run-game structure, red-zone packages, and personnel groupings. When injuries stack at the position, play-call flexibility can shrink. Conklin's return would help Detroit avoid leaning too heavily on emergency options while the staff sorts through the remaining preseason calendar.

It also changes the roster math. Injured reserve placements for Firkser and Kitselman reduce the number of available competitors, while Conklin's return adds a known veteran back into the mix. That can affect who gets preseason reps and how the Lions evaluate younger or fringe players around him.

What to watch:

The next signal is Conklin's actual practice workload once removed from PUP. Limited participation would still be progress, but full-team reps would say more about how quickly Detroit can count on him. It is also worth watching whether the Lions add another tight end externally or treat Conklin's return as enough short-term cover.

Confidence:

Confirmed by the source: Detroit is expected to remove Tyler Conklin from the PUP list, and Anthony Firkser and Miles Kitselman are on injured reserve. Still unresolved: Conklin's immediate workload, whether he is available for preseason action, and how Detroit reshapes the final tight end depth chart.