The Detroit Lions have kept running back Jabari Small in the building, waiving him off the 53-man roster on Sept. 2 and adding him back to the practice squad four days later as they prepare for Sunday’s season opener against the New Orleans Saints at Ford Field.
The move, announced via the NFL transaction log, is familiar. Small, an undrafted 2024 signee out of Tennessee, first joined Detroit in July 2025, spent time in camp, and later finished last season on the practice squad before signing a reserve/future deal in January.
He made the initial 53 this summer, then was cut without an injury settlement after a concussion in the preseason finale, clearing the path for a quick return once he passed through waivers.
For a Lions backfield led by Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, Small is insurance and a practice-week look. Detroit also placed Isiah Pacheco on injured reserve heading into Week 1, so extra bodies who know the system matter.
Practice-squad running backs rarely steal the spotlight in September, but they stay ready for elevations if injuries hit.
What Small showed at Tennessee is why the Lions keep circling back. Over four seasons in Knoxville he rushed for 2,122 yards and 24 touchdowns on 419 carries, adding 32 receptions. He was a compact, 5-foot-9, roughly 200-pound back with vision, a low pad level, and the ability to finish runs.
At his Pro Day, he posted a 36-inch vertical and a 9-foot-9 broad jump, numbers that matched the burst and start-stop quickness scouts saw on film: sudden cuts, efficient movement through tight creases, and enough pop to turn routine inside runs into chunk plays when a seam appeared.
He was never a burner—his 40-yard times sat in the mid-4.5s to low-4.6s—but he displayed the short-area explosiveness that translates to special-teams work and change-of-pace carries.
That trait set, plus familiarity with Detroit’s scheme, made him an easy practice-squad add days before the Saints arrive.
Sunday’s game (1 p.m. ET, FOX) opens a season in which both clubs are trying to reset after 2025. The Lions finished 9-8 and missed the playoffs; New Orleans is coming off another losing year under Kellen Moore. Depth moves like Small’s rarely decide openers.
They do, however, show how Detroit is stocking the room with players who have already been through camp here and still have the athletic traits that first put them on the roster.
Small has yet to play a regular-season NFL snap. For now he is a practice-squad piece with a college tape that still flashes those explosive cuts. If the Lions need a body later, they know exactly what they are getting.
