Lions place rookie CB Carter on IR

The Detroit Lions placed Alex Carter on injured reserve with a designation to return Sunday, meaning the rookie cornerback will miss at least the first half of the season.

Carter, the Lions’ third-round pick out of Stanford, sprained his ankle during seven-on-seven drills days before the start of training camp and has practiced only sparingly in recent weeks.

He said last week that he was dealing with a bone bruise in his ankle and didn’t think a stint on IR would be necessary.

“It’s not easy,” Carter said. “I haven’t put on pads since January, in the bowl game. One day last (month), but that was about it. I haven’t played football. But I just have to take it one day at a time.”

The Lions were initially hoping Carter could back up cornerbacks Darius Slay and Rashean Mathis this year and contribute on special teams, but with essentially three months of lost development, that appears to be a long shot.

On IR, Carter won’t be able to practice with the Lions for the first six weeks of the regular season and won’t be eligible to play in games until after the Lions return from their Week 9 bye.

Last year, the Lions started rookie second-round pick Kyle Van Noy on IR with a designation to return after he underwent August hernia surgery. Van Noy barely played in the second half of the season.

To replace Carter on the 53-man roster, the Lions re-signed defensive tackle Jermelle Cudjo, one of their final cuts on Saturday.

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