Lions DE John Cominsky Out ‘Indefinitely’ After Suffering Significant Injury

The Detroit Lions were one of the most surprising teams in 2023, securing a 12-5 record and nearly punching their ticket to the Super Bowl. The Lions were barely edged out by the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 34-31 in last season’s NFC Championship Game, ending their hopes of securing a long-overdue championship.

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With head coach Dan Campbell being the catalyst for the team’s new identity and franchise quarterback Jared Goff leading the way on offense, the Lions looked like the real deal. Heading into the 2024 season, there is a lot of buzz around the team again, but now they have been dealt with a significant injury.

Lions defensive end John Cominsky is out “indefinitely” after tearing his MCL in practice.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, “Lions veteran DE John Cominsky tore his MCL at practice today and now is expected to be out indefinitely, per sources. Cominsky could be ‘possibly back for the playoffs’ should the Lions advance that far.”

The bad news is the Lions are presumably going to be without Cominsky for the entirety of the regular season. The good news is they could get him back in time for the playoffs.

According to clevelandclinic.org, “The time it takes to fully recover from an MCL tear depends on how severe the tear is. A grade 1 (mild) MCL tear usually heals within one to three weeks. A grade 2 (moderate) MCL tear generally takes four to six weeks to heal with treatment. A grade 3 (severe) MCL tear can take six weeks or more to heal with treatment. If you undergo surgery to fix your MCL tear, it could take longer.”

No further details have been provided on the severity of Cominsky’s MCL tear, but he had to be carted off the field during practice. The hope is the grade of the tear is more on the minimal side.

Cominsky appeared in 19 games through the regular season and the playoffs and had 14 starts. In that time, he secured two sacks and 43 tackles.

In the 2023 season, Cominsky played 56 percent of his snaps on defense, and 16 percent of his snaps on special teams.

The Lions still have Marcus Davenport on the defensive end side of things with depth in Josh Paschal, Nate Lynn, Mitchell Agude, and Mathieu Betts, but losing Cominsky is a huge blow to the rotational pass rush the team has.

The hope is Cominsky can come back sooner rather than later, but at least there is hope he can return for the Lions’ presumed playoff run.