42 Devon Kennard OLB

Kennard recorded four tackles, all solo, and three sacks across 81 defensive snaps in Sunday's tie with the Cardinals.

Fellow linebacker Jarrad Davis was sidelined for Sunday's opener with a high-ankle sprain, which forced Kennard to take over the play-calling responsibilities. The veteran played in 81 percent of the defensive snaps and made an impact, as he took down Kyler Murray on three separate occasions.

Kennard generated four tackles and three sacks during Sunday's 27-27 tie with the Cardinals.

This is the kind of production the Lions were hoping for when they inked Kennard to a three-year contract prior to the 2018 season. While we have to keep in mind that this came against the worst offensive line in the league during Kyler Murray's first regular-season game, it's also true that Kennard has an intimidating defensive line before him that should pave clean paths to the quarterback on a regular basis.

Kennard produced 46 tackles and seven sacks over 15 games for the Lions in 2018.

Outside of slapping the franchise tag on defensive end Ezekiel Ansah (shoulder), Kennard was Detroit's biggest free-agent splash of the offseason on defense. Kennard almost exclusively was used as a pass rusher in his first year with the Lions and consequently collected a career high in sacks, though he only notched two in his final 10 games after piling up five in the first five games. Under contract for another two seasons, Kennard will look to improve his consistency in 2019 for a team that could realistically be without Ansah's services.

Kennard (hip) is active for Sunday's game versus the Vikings, Tim Twentyman of the Lions' official site reports.

Kennard participated in practice all week in a limited fashion. He'll return to his starting role at outside linebacker and will be tasked with slowing down Vikings running back Dalvin Cook while blitzing quarterback Kirk Cousins, who has been sacked 34 times in 14 games.

Kennard (hip) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Vikings.

Kennard was limited in practice all week, making his status for Week 16's divisional tilt truly murky. If the starting linebacker were to miss any time, Eli Harold would benefit from increased defensive snaps.

Kennard recorded four tackles (two solo) and a sack across 68 defensive snaps in Sunday's loss to the Bills.

After missing the prior contest due to a hip injury, Kennard returned to action in Buffalo and didn't miss a beat. He recorded his seventh sack of the season, which leads the Lions.

Kennard (hip) is active for Sunday's tilt against the Bills.

Kennard was forced to sit out last week due to the minor hip injury, but he'll return Sunday as he projects to start at outside linebacker across from Christian Jones.

Kennard (hip) is inactive for Sunday's game at Arizona, Kyle Meinke of MLive.com reports.

Kennard will miss his first game of the season after suffering the hip injury last week against the Rams. Eli Harold should see a heavier workload at linebacker for the Lions in his absence.

Kennard (hip) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Cardinals.

Kennard suffered the hip injury last week against the Rams and was a limited practice participant Thursday and Friday. Eli Harold would be called upon for a greater defensive role if Kennard is unable to play at Arizona.

Kennard (hip) did not practice Wednesday.

Kennard suffered a hip injury during Sunday's loss to the Rams. If Kennard is unable to suit up against the Cardinals in Week 14, Eli Harold will once again slot into the starting lineup.

Kennard is questionable to return to Sunday's game against the Rams due to a hip injury, Justin Rogers of The Detroit News reports.

Eli Harold will draw the start at left inside linebacker as long as Kennard remains sidelined.

Kennard tallied four tackles and a sack during Sunday's 20-19 victory over Carolina.

On pace for 56 tackles and almost 10 sacks, Kennard continues to make the Lions look good for handing the linebacker a three-year, $17 million contract over the offseason. With defensive end Ziggy Ansah healthy and middle linebacker Jarrad Davis also showing progress in the pass-rush department, the Detroit defense -- which now sits ninth in the league with 28 sacks -- should have no problem continuing to cause problems for opposing offenses down the stretch.

Kennard recorded one sack and recovered a fumble across 78 defensive snaps in Sunday's win over the Packers.

Kennard's five sacks rank as the fifth-highest figure in the NFL. The linebacker continues to see a high volume of defensive reps, making him an intriguing IDP option at linebacker once the Lions return from their bye week.

Kennard recorded four tackles (three solo) and two sacks across 64 defensive snaps in Sunday's loss to the 49ers.

Kennard continues to impress amongst an otherwise dismal Detroit defense, as the former-Giant has now logged three sacks on the season. He played in 100 percent of the defensive snaps and will likely continue to see a heavy workload as long as the high production comes with it.

Kennard posted six total tackles (four solo) and a sack in Monday's loss to the Jets.

While the Lions defense as a whole struggled to start the 2018 season, Kennard was very impressive in his Detroit debut after four seasons with the Giants. Kennard had a late start to training camp after being placed on the NFI for nearly a week, but the linebacker avoided a slow start to the season and played all but two of the Lions' defensive snaps Monday.

The Lions activated Kennard (undisclosed) off the Non-Football Injury list Wednesday, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com reports.

Kennard signed a three-year pact with the Lions in March after recording between 41 and 61 tackles during each of his first four years in the league with the Giants. He's expected to fill the starting left outside linebacker spot for the Lions in 2018 and can now get to work following a delayed start to camp.

Kennard (undisclosed) was placed on the Non-Football Injury list Thursday, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Kennard was available for most of spring workouts without mention of any injury. The reasoning for his placement on the NFI list thus isn't clear, though those familiar with his situation indicated that the linebacker will be ready to go prior to the start of the regular season. In Kennard's absence, Christian Jones and Jonathan Freeny figure to get extended reps with the first-team defense.

Kennard and the Lions have reached agreement on a three-year, $18.75 million contract, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

A 2014 fifth-round selection, Kennard landed between 41 and 61 tackles each of his four seasons with the Giants, adding 9.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and an interception in 52 games. He has experience both rushing the passer and dropping into coverage, potentially making him a strong fit at outside linebacker as the Lions transition to more 3-4 looks under new head coach Matt Patricia.

Kennard recorded 41 tackles (24 solo), four sacks, two passes defensed and a fumble recovery in 15 games throughout his 2017 campaign.

Kennard's talents were used on both defense and special teams by the Giants for the fourth consecutive season, though his 41 tackles marked a career low in a single campaign. The 26-year-old outside linebacker will be an unrestricted free agent this offseason, so he may find himself somewhere other than New York in 2018.

Kennard (quadriceps) is active for Sunday's matchup with the Chiefs.

Kennard will slot back into his starting strong-side linebacker position after missing Week 10's matchup with the 49ers. His stat line this season hasn't been too impressive, with just 23 tackles (12 solo) and one sack, leaving him off most fantasy radars.