Detroit Lions team
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The Detroit Lions improved to 6-2 with a 19-9 win over the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, and they did it with linebacker Jack Campbell on everyone’s mind.
Several Lions players showed up to Hard Rock Stadium wearing Campbell’s No. 46 jersey, a week after the All-Pro was carted off the field with a frightening neck injury.
Defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard wore one too.
There’s still no official timetable for Campbell’s return. And for a while, it wasn’t clear if there would be one at all.
However, the latest update is better than anyone could’ve expected.
Jack Campbell Could Play Again in 2026
Jack Campbell
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According to The Athletic’s Mike Silver, there’s increased optimism among those inside the Lions’ building.
Silver was encouraged by the recent update he got after talking with some Lions players. That update included some pretty astonishing news.
“It’s more positive than I would’ve expected based on the lack of information we were getting after the initial injury, which is not a good sign,” Silver said. “But Jack Campbell issued that statement saying he had full movement in his lower extremities and was regaining movement in his upper extremities.
“There are people in that building who are even saying he could come back this year. Now I have no idea if that’s just emotion talking. Obviously the doctors, and Jack and his family are going to be very, very careful about what goes down.”
That’s a big “if.” The Lions placed Campbell on injured reserve Saturday. He also remained at Henry Ford Hospital as of Sunday.
But the 26-year-old clearly isn’t ruling anything out.
Michael Gallagher Michael Gallagher is a sports journalist covering the NFL for Heavy.com. He has more than a decade of experience working for both local and national news outlets covering the NFL, NHL, NBA, WNBA, college football, and MMA. His work has been featured in Newsweek, Yahoo Sports, Fox Sports, Athlon Sports, The Hockey News, the Nashville Scene, SB Nation, and Yardbarker. More about Michael Gallagher