The Detroit Lions’ tight end room has been battered and bruised by injury over the past several weeks. For starters, the Lions placed Sam LaPorta on injured reserve towards the end of last month due to a back injury.
Lions fans were hoping that LaPorta could return at some point during the final stretch, but head coach Dan Campbell told reporters that it's “very, very slim.” After LaPorta went down, the Lions then saw backup tight end Brock Wright also get placed on injured reserve on Dec. 4 with a back injury.
With their top two tight end options on the shelf, the Lions turned to Anthony Firsker and Ross Dwelley, who both are limited in what they can do. However, Detroit finally received some good injury news on the TE front, as Shane Zylstra is back in action.
Ahead of their Week 15 contest vs. the Los Angeles Rams, the Lions announced on Saturday that Zylstra was activated from injured reserve. Earlier this week, Detroit released Ross Dwelley, which opened the door to the idea that maybe Zylstra’s return to the 53-man roster was on the horizon.
The Lions opened Zylstra's 21-day practice on December 1, which means they had until the 22nd to decide on whether he would return or stay on injured reserve for the rest of the season.
Lions Suddenly Activate TE Shane Zylstra Ahead of Week 15 Contest vs. Rams
Lions fans should not expect Zylstra to step in and be LaPorta 2.0, as that’s not his game. But having someone like the 29-year-old tight end, who has been within the Lions’ system for many years, should give Jared Goff a safety valve if everyone else is covered.
The veteran tight end had his 2025 season derailed in Week 2 by an ankle injury that forced him on injured reserve. Before he was placed on IR, Zylstra wasn’t playing much in general, logging seven total snaps (1 on offense, 6 on special teams).
Throughout his four-year career with the Lions, the former Minnesota State star has been a core special teams player, which makes sense given that he has been the third TE recently, behind LaPorta and Wright.
Looking ahead to Sunday’s game, the Rams likely won’t be paying attention to Zylstra in the passing game, as he has only 15 receptions (23 targets) for 116 yards and four touchdowns.
However, Zylstra is an upgrade over Firsker from that standpoint, as he’s mustered only two receptions (two targets) for 11 yards across three games with the Lions. After this weekend's game against LA, the Lions will play the Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, and Chicago Bears.
With how things have gone recently for Detroit on the injury front, they’re excited to welcome back Zylstra with open arms.