Allen Park — The Detroit Lions’ injury situation seemingly continues to get a little bit worse by the day.
On Saturday, the day before the team’s Week 2 matchup against the Washington Commanders, the Lions downgraded guard Jonah Jackson to doubtful.
Jackson suffered a finger injury during Wednesday’s practice and was held out of the final two sessions to end the week. On Friday, he was spotted on the sideline with the ring finger on his right hand heavily taped.
With Jackson now unlikely to play, the Lions are facing the prospect of starting three backups along the interior of the team’s offensive front. Center Frank Ragnow had been previously ruled out with groin and foot injuries, while right guard Halapoulivaati Vaitai was placed on injured reserve ahead of the season opener and underwent back surgery this week.
Logan Stenberg and Evan Brown are the obvious choice for two of those three holes, with Stenberg starting in place of Vaitai last week and Brown filling in for Ragnow most of last season after the starter went down with a toe injury.
The team has a number of options for the other guard spot, including newcomers Drew Forbes and Kayode Awosika, who each joined the roster the past two weeks. The downside is they’ve combined for just 43 regular-season snaps between them. Alternatively, the team could shift right tackle Penei Sewell to guard and start backup offensive tackle Matt Nelson in Sewell’s typical spot.
In addition to downgrading Jackson, the Lions temporarily elevated offensive tackle Dan Skipper and linebacker Anthony Pittman off the practice squad for the weekend’s contest.
Skipper provides added depth along Detroit’s depleted offensive line, while Pittman gets the bump for the second consecutive week, sharing the team’s lead for special teams snaps in the opening contest.
Walker’s paycheck docked
Lions safety Tracy Walker was fined $11,139 for his hit on Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, which drew an unnecessary roughness penalty in the second half of the season opener.
Linebacker Alex Anzalone, who was also flagged for unnecessary roughness for a hit on Hurts, was not fined.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers