Cade Mays fractures wrist, Lions' run game takes a hit

The Lions spent the offseason fixing a run game that stalled out too often in 2025, and the fix started at center. Detroit signed Cade Mays away from Carolina in March on a 3-year, $25 million deal with $14 million guaranteed, betting his interior play could replace what they lost when Frank Ragnow retired. That bet just took a hit.

Adam Schefter confirmed what Lions fans feared Monday: Mays' wrist injury will keep him out for what head coach Dan Campbell called "a significant" amount of time. According to ESPN, Mays fractured a small bone in the wrist and is expected to miss roughly 8-10 weeks. Campbell wouldn't pin a return date, joking he'd be ready for the playoffs, but the timing stings for a lineman who was reportedly progressing well through camp.

Hayden Winks summed up why this one hurts more than a standard camp injury.

Mays wasn't just a depth add. He came over from Carolina after 4 seasons with the Panthers, where he didn't allow a sack over 726 snaps last year and posted one of the better run-block win rates among centers in the league. Detroit brought him in specifically to be the anchor of a retooled line and get the ground game humming again after last season's dip. Now that anchor is on the shelf into the season.

Mays isn't the only banged-up name in Detroit's backfield picture. Schefter also flagged that running back Isiah Pacheco is dealing with his own injury, an MCL sprain, though the Lions are reportedly optimistic he'll be good to go for the Week 1 opener against New Orleans.

None of this sinks Detroit's season by itself, and Campbell isn't treating Mays' injury as season-ending. But losing your new starting center for the better part of two months, right as the team was trying to solve its run-blocking problem, is exactly the kind of camp setback that forces a contender to improvise up front before Week 1 even kicks off.