The Detroit Lions 2022 season was the start of the incredible turnaround for this team. Relive the season through the lens of the Top 10 Injury News recap with present day updates.
Here are number five and six on the list. For the full list, visit 2022 Revisited: Lions Top 10 Injury News with Present Updates.
#5 Jeff Okudah amazing (at first) Achilles recovery
🦁Detroit Lions Top 10 injury news of 2022
#5 Jeff Okudah’s amazing Achilles recovery
-After tear in week 1 of 2021, back to full strength by preseason
-First half of year, was a borderline shutdown CB
-⬇️Video game 4 shows great recovery speed, nice layout, and swag at the end pic.twitter.com/fgZtV0E2KU— Jimmy Liao MD | Detroit Lions Morning Rounds (@JimmyLiaoMD) March 7, 2023
After tearing his Achilles in Week 1 of 2021, Okudah was back to full strength by the next preseason. In the first half of the 2022 season, he was playing like a shutdown CB. His athleticism amazingly appeared to be better than prior to the injury.
However, his play started to slip in the latter parts of the 2022 season, which was his last with the Lions.
2026 UPDATE: Okudah has bounced around the NFL since leaving the Lions. He appeared in 6 games last year with the Vikings, before multiple concussions ended his season. Currently, he is an unsigned free agent.
The Lions CB room has yet to find any long-term consistency since.
#6 DJ Chark mystery ankle injury
🦁Detroit Lions Top 10 injury news of 2022
#6 DJ Chark ankle
-Fractured left ankle in 2021.
-No evidence of injury during 2022 game film.
-⬇️Video final play game 3 where he looks fine.
-Mysteriously misses next 6 games.
-Productive, impactful player when he was available. pic.twitter.com/80g0pkYkb1— Jimmy Liao MD | Detroit Lions Morning Rounds (@JimmyLiaoMD) March 6, 2023
There was nothing obvious on video as to what happened to Chark’s ankle. Thus, it was a mystery why he missed the next six games. A possible factor was an ankle fracture in 2021.
When available, Chark was a productive, impactful WR that season.
2026 UPDATE: Chark last appeared in the NFL in 2024 with the Chargers. Currently, he is retired.
The Lions have had no issues in the WR room after nailing the draft with Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, and potentially Isaac TeSlaa.
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This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: 2022 Throwback: Detroit Lions Top 10 Injury News – Okudah & Chark
