Matthew Stafford is making progress with his injured right shoulder, but Shaun Hill is expected to start for the Detroit Lions on Sunday at the Metrodome.
Stafford showed off his range of motion with the shoulder on Wednesday in the locker room, raising it above his head. But as Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports, he couldn’t untie his shoelaces using the same arm. Suffice to say, if he can’t untie his shoes, he’s not going to be able to zip a pass downfield for a while.
That’s a problem and it means he’s still a ways off from getting back into action. How far? The Lions and Stafford are not saying at this point.
“It's going good," Stafford said. "I am just trying to keep my shoulder as strong as possible. Whenever I am ready to go, I will play. It feels better.
"They will give me a day whenever they (Lions' medical staff) feel like I am ready to throw and I will start throwing. After that, we will see. I don't know what the plan will be but it might be just to jump right back into it.”
Stafford was injured when he was sacked and driven into the turf by Chicago Bears defensive end Julius Peppers in the season opener. Hill was shaky when he came in and replace Stafford, but after a week of practice with Hill, the Lions’ offense was much more productive in a 35-32 loss at Ford Field to the Philadelphia Eagles. Hill has experience so the Lions believe they can be competitive with him. They are building around Stafford, though, and the push is on to get him back.
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