Ex Alabama defensive lineman is released by rivalry club

admin | January 3, 2024 | Other Clubs | No Comments

The Detroit Lions will play in the NFC playoffs for the first time since 2016, and they will do so as division champions for the first time since 1993. However, defensive tackle Isaiah Buggs will not be among them.

The former Alabama defensive lineman was cut by the Lions on Tuesday, adding another chapter to Buggs’ strange season.

Buggs has been cut by a playoff-bound team in the week before its regular-season finale for the second time in his career.

Buggs was released by the Pittsburgh Steelers the day before the end of the 2021 season.

Buggs, a sixth-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, recorded 433 defensive snaps in 29 games in three seasons with the Steelers.

Buggs, who was signed by the Lions just before training camp in 2022, appeared in all 17 games for Detroit last season, starting 13 of them. He has 46 tackles, one sack, ten quarterback hits, two pass breakups, and one forced fumble in 755 snaps.

Rather than becoming an unrestricted free agent, Buggs agreed to terms with the Lions on a two-year, $4.5 million contract deal that included a $1 million signing bonus and $2.1 million in guaranteed money.

However, when the season began, Bugg was labeled as a game-day inactive for the first two games. Buggs missed four of the next five games after coming off the bench in the previous five. He was listed on the injury report for two of those games, with the explanation “illness.”

Buggs returned to start the following three games before playing 23 defensive snaps as a substitute in the Dallas Cowboys’ 20-19 loss on Saturday.

Buggs played 254 defensive snaps, 12 tackles, and one sack in 10 games in 2023.

Buggs was dismissed by the Lions after Detroit coach Dan Campbell stated on Monday that he believes defensive lineman Alim McNeill will return to the active roster from injured reserve this week. McNeill started the first 12 games of the season before being sidelined by a knee injury for the last four.

While Buggs was released from the NFL on Tuesday, another player with Alabama football ties returned to the league. On Saturday, the Jacksonville Jaguars dismissed offensive lineman Chandler Brewer and activated former Alabama All-American Cam Robinson from injured reserve. The Jaguars signed the former Florence High School standout to their practice squad on Tuesday, bringing him back into the fold.