Lions rookie defensive end Ahmed Hassanein was making strides in training camp. Now he'll be stuck on the sidelines.
After suffering a pec injury in the Lions' preseason loss to the Dolphins, "Ahmed is gonna be down for a while," Dan Campbell said Monday.
Asked if Hassanein could return at some point this season, Campbell said, "That's a good question. I don't have that answer yet."
Either way, it's a blow to the sixth-round pick who was making his presence felt in practice with his high-effort play on the edge of the defensive line.
"He puts in the work, he wants it, and it's tough when it's a young guy because you build so much of what you are, your foundation, over your first two years," Campbell said.
"The good news," said Campbell, is that Hassanein banked a lot of valuable reps over the first three weeks of camp.
"The bad news is, he's gonna miss the rest of that. It's tough, you wish they could be there, I know he does, too. But it is what it it. And the good news with that kid is, he's a grinder. He's going to do everything it takes, you already know that, to heal up, to rehab, to be back. He's going to stay in it mentally, learn what he can, process what he can, and that's always going to give you a chance to be better when you come back," Campbell said.
The loss of Hassanein thins out the Lions' defensive line, particularly at edge, where they're banking on Marcus Davenport staying healthy across from Aidan Hutchinson after he missed most of the past two seasons with injuries.
Campbell made it sound like the Lions will continue to evaluate the players they have in-house, such as Nate Lynn, Keith Cooper Jr. and Isaac Ukwu, before they go seeking external help.
"I think with where we're at right now, we're just gonna hang tight. Certainly if something shows here over the next week, which probably the odds of that are pretty slim, we would keep our eyes open. I know Brad (Holmes) is looking at everything, but right now we're just gonna hang tight."
