Lions RB Jahvid Best sidelined with 3rd concussion
ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP)—Jahvid Best(notes) walked across the Detroit Lions locker
room, trying to avoid eye contact and conversation.
The running back did slow down slightly, but wouldn’t or couldn’t answer
whether he’ll play Sunday against Atlanta.
“I have no idea,” Best said Wednesday after missing practice because of a
concussion.
Unfortunately for Best and the Lions, timetables are elusive when it comes
to concussion, and he says this one is his third. He had one in the second
preseason game this year and another in 2009, his final season at California
when a spectacular fall sent him to the hospital with a concussion and sore
back.
Best was knocked out of Sunday’s loss against San Francisco.
“He had a hard time with some of the lights after the game,” Lions coach
Jim Schwartz said. “Those are signs that you’ve got to be concerned about and
you have to be objective about. We’ll have a whole protocol that he has to go
through to get back on the field.
“Coming back from a concussion isn’t like coming back from a sprained ankle
or a bad shoulder or a pulled hamstring. Some of those things you can tough out.
You can’t tough out a concussion.”
Detroit linebacker Justin Durant(notes) and tight end Tony Scheffler(notes) missed the
49ers game, recovering from concussions of their own, and also didn’t practice
Wednesday.
With Best out, the Lions (5-1) might need newly acquired Ronnie Brown(notes) to
learn some plays right away because he may suit up Sunday against the Falcons
(3-3) despite not practicing Wednesday. The Philadelphia Eagles have said they
dealt Brown to Detroit for Jerome Harrison(notes) and an undisclosed pick in the 2013
draft.
Schwartz said Brown can get up to speed quickly because he’s a veteran who
played in Miami for Lions offensive coordinator Scott Linehan.
Detroit will perhaps rotate Brown with Maurice Morris(notes) and Keiland Williams(notes)
against Atlanta and Schwartz said he likes “a lot” about both.
“Maurice has answered the bell any time its been run for him,” Schwartz
said. “Keiland has shown some really nice things.”
Detroit’s depth in the backfield took a hit during the preseason when rookie
running back Mikel Leshoure(notes) had a season-ending injury. The team has signed
running back James Davis(notes) to the practice team and released tight end Nathan
Overbay(notes) from the practice squad.
Best, in his second season out of Cal, has played in all six games this
season, rushing 84 times for 390 yards at 4.6 yards per carry and two
touchdowns. He also has 27 catches for 287 yards and a score. He has not
fumbled.
Brown, backing up LeSean McCoy(notes), ran for 38 yards on 13 carries over six
games and had a very memorable fumble in Week 4. On a third-and-1 from the San
Francisco 1, he got stuffed at the line on a run-pass option and tried to throw
the ball. His fumble contributed to Philadelphia blowing a 20-point lead and
losing by one point.
The 6-foot, 230-pound Brown ran for 734 yards and five touchdowns last year
with the Dolphins, who drafted him No. 2 overall in 2005 out of Auburn. He has
4,853 yards rushing in his career—4.3 yards per attempt—and 36 touchdowns
along with 184 receptions for 1,491 yards and two scores.
“We think he’s an outstanding player that has a good chance to help us down
the line here,” Schwartz said. “He’s a multi-dimensional player. He’s big, but
he’s not just the big back. He can run the perimeter.”
AP Sports Writer Charles Odum in Flowery Branch, Ga., contributed to this
report.