Christian Mahogany's girlfriend is like Lions fans everywhere: "She don't want me in the house no more," he said Wednesday with a laugh. Detroit's second-year guard, who's nearing a return from the leg injury that's sidelined him for several weeks, has a habit of yelling at the TV when he watches the Lions play from home.
"I'm like, 'Oh, we’re gonna run this!’ Like, if I hear the play-call from Jared, I’m like, 'Oh, we’re doing this, it should work!' And then I scream. I get hyped for my guys," Mahogany said.
After he and his girlfriend watched the Lions' win over the Cowboys together, she decided it was time for Mahogany to go back to work.
"I’m cool," he said. "I’d rather play than anything."
Mahogany's aim is to return Sunday versus the Steelers: "That's the goal right now." He said he was "pretty close" to returning last week for the Rams game, but Dan Campbell said Wednesday that Mahogany wasn't quite ready. If he responds well to a full-speed practice Thursday, Mahogany will be a go for Sunday.
"We’re hopeful," said Campbell. "It looks pretty good."
Sunday will mark seven weeks since Mahogany fractured his leg fibula in the Lions' loss to the Vikings. Late December was his targeted return from the start.
"I feel good," he said. "I feel rejuvenated. You have a lot of time off, mental, physical, emotional, everything, so I’m ready. Whatever they think — I mean, I’m not gonna jeopardize the team, the organization if I don’t think I can go — but I’m gonna try my best."
While the defense is the bigger cause for concern for the Lions right now, they certainly stand to benefit from plugging Mahogany back in at left guard. His replacements have not played especially well, from Kayode Awosika, who's nursing a foot injury, to Trystan Colon to Miles Frazier, though the rookie has shown some promise in spurts.
With the Lions needing to win their final three games to have a realistic shot of making the playoffs, some fresh legs on the offensive line certainly won't hurt.
"There’s always a positive to everything, so I looked at it like, I played nine straight weeks and then you get a few weeks off," Mahogany said. "These guys have been battling all season long and I’m just trying to get back. I’m as fresh as I can be right now, and just want to come back for my guys."