Real Deal: A new cornerback has been officially signed by the Detroit Lions and added to their training roster.

The Detroit Lions are signing Craig James to their practice squad, potentially to help replace an injured Jerry Jacobs on special teams.

Cornerback Craig James is being signed by the Detroit Lions to their practice squad, per a report from NFL insider Aaron Wilson. As of the time of publishing, no corresponding move had been reported; the Lions have not confirmed this move. That will be necessary because the Lions’ practice squad currently has 16 players, which is the maximum.

Although James was not selected in the 2018 NFL Draft, he has since played for three different teams. Before making three late-season appearances on special teams, he played the majority of his rookie campaign on the Minnesota Vikings practice squad. The Philadelphia Eagles would pick him up the next season after he was cut, and he would play for current Lions special teams coach Dave Fipp.

would spend the following three seasons in Philadelphia, where he appeared in 18 games overall with one start. Under Fipp’s direction, he was an important member of the Eagles’ special team in 2019 with 237 snaps overall, which was fifth most on the team.

For the Eagles, he was frequently used as a gunner, which is especially pertinent to the Lions. Jerry Jacobs was demoted to a special teams position by the Lions last week, although coach Dan Campbell praised his unique abilities as a gunner.