I'm not sure of the timing, but the Lions did something this past week I found interesting. They put their third-round cornerback pick, Alex Carter, on the IR-Designated to Return list, using that designation up right away.
Now, either earlier than this, or just after (I am not sure), their best defensive player, DeAndre Levy, suffered a hip injury. Most reports have him out at least two or three weeks, though some say the injury is more serious.
I'm not sure if the team simply decided Levy's injury would heal and they didn't want to keep him out half the season, so they designated their rookie corner, or if maybe they jumped the gun and wish they'd used it on Levy.
Either way, Levy's absence will hurt this team's defense pretty badly. That dude can play.