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The Detroit Lions lost their starting left guard to an injury in the first half Sunday vs. the Saints.
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Christian Mahogany, a third-year player out of Boston College, left the season-opening tilt with what was initially reported as a knee injury. He was replaced by Ben Bartch and eventually ruled out for the game.
Mahogany’s injury occurred in the first quarter when he was running downfield to block on a Jahmyr Gibbs run. He appeared to trip, which resulted in him going to the turf and landing awkwardly.
Bartch would play the remainder of the contest at the left guard position, and ultimately the Lions would emerge victorious by a final of 31-30. After the game, head coach Dan Campbell offered an uncertain outlook on Mahogany, while noting that the injury could be more of a hip ailment than a knee ailment.
“I don’t really know. I hate to say one way or another,” Campbell said. “We did do a scan that really ended up being negative, so that’s good news but that doesn’t mean we’re out of the woods. Sounds like it could be more hip-ish, maybe. But we’ll see.”
Coach Campbell on Christian Mahogany’s injury pic.twitter.com/mchjZxQNGZ
– Detroit Lions (@Lions) September 13, 2026
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A starter in 11 games last season, Mahogany entered training camp in competition to earn his job back against Bartch and Juice Scruggs. However, the competition never really materialized as Bartch’s recovery from a season-ending Lisfranc injury was slower than expected. And once he returned, he spent time in concussion protocol.
Additionally, Scruggs was moved from guard to center in the wake of a wrist injury suffered by starting center Cade Mays. The Lions placed Mays on injured reserve as part of final cuts, meaning he will miss at least the first four games of the regular season.
Mahogany missed some time last year with a fractured fibula, which he suffered in the team’s Week 9 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
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Bartch took a key holding penalty in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game. The Lions were inside the Saints’ 5-yard line, looking to extend their lead to 28-17 with a touchdown and subsequent extra point. However, Bartch was whistled for holding which drove the offense back.
Ultimately, the Lions had to settle for a field goal, making it a one-touchdown game, 24-17. The Saints would rally to tie the score and send the game into overtime, where the Lions would score and stifle a Saints two-point conversion attempt to win by a single point.
Detroit signal-caller Jared Goff was highly complimentary of the banged-up offensive line’s season-opening performance.
“Offensive line, I thought they did a great job. And coming together and Bartch stepping in there and having to play pretty much the whole game, I told them I thought the pass pro was awesome. They really did,” Goff expressed. “And then the run game was good. And it’s like really close to being really, really good. And I think they know that. But they did a really good job today.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/lions/onsi as Lions Uncertain About LG Hip Injury.
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This story was originally published September 13, 2026 at 3:46 PM.