Alex Anzalone is back at practice for the Lions six weeks after breaking his forearm, but isn't yet sure he'll return for Sunday's showdown with the Vikings.
There are multiple factors for the Lions to weigh, like Anzalone's readiness to make an impact in a winner-take-all game in the NFC North and his risk of exacerbating the injury and potentially missing the playoffs.
Anzalone, who had a steel plate inserted in his left forearm, said he isn't back to 100 percent and won't be until the offseason, but “no one is 100 percent at this point. So it’s just, can you be productive and is it safe?"
Anzalone had a carbon fiber cast over his left arm at Thursday's practice that he will wear moving forward. He said he will have more conversations in the coming days with Dan Campbell and the Lions' medical personnel as to his status for Sunday, with "more decisions to be made collaboratively."
"For me personally, I think it’s like, OK, say if something did happen, would I be OK not playing in the Super Bowl?" Anzalone said. "I think that’s kind of the decision I have to make in my own head, and is it worth it? How do I feel going over these next few practices? And go from there, because I haven’t practiced in six weeks. I’m just using my arm and seeing how it goes.”
Anzalone said he felt "solid" at Thursday's practice, for which he was a full participant. The Lions could certainly use their top linebacker and co-captain back in the lineup. Their injury-ravaged defense has struggled without him, allowing an average of 32.5 points over the last four games.
Asked about the narrative that the defense isn't good enough for the Lions to win the Super Bowl, Anzalone said, "I think that’s bulls**t, honestly."
"We have to do our part and limit points. That’s the No. 1 goal as a defense. We haven’t been doing that recently, but at the same time, to say we’re not good enough to win the Super Bowl, I think that’s pretty dumb," Anzalone said.
The big question for the doctors, said Anzalone, is "how much more healing is there going to be in the next week or two?" If he doesn't stand to gain a whole lot by waiting -- and even if he does -- it will likely be hard to keep him off the field.
"It’s an exciting time to be a Detroit Lion," Anzalone said. "These are the moments you really dream about. As a player, it doesn’t get any better than this. This is all you can ask for, in-division game for the division championship, for the No. 1 seed."