Conklin returns to Lions

Signed near the end of the opening week of free agency, 31-year-old Conklin couldn’t make the team after a down year for the Chargers in 2025. Although he’s inarguably in decline, Conklin is well-rounded enough that he will porbably make 2026 regular season appearances. Also waived/released by the Lions were DL Myles Adams, LB Joe Bachie, WR Greg Dortch, WR Tom Kennedy LB Amen Ogbongbemiga, LB Troy Reeder, DL Ben Stille, RB Trayveon Williams, QB Luke Altmyer, WR Tarik Black, CB Ekow Boye-Doe, DB Aamaris Brown, OL Devin Cochran, CB Bump Cooper Jr., WR Malik Cunningham, TE Thomas Gordon, OL Gus Hartwig, TE Zach Horton, LB Erick Hunter, S Dan Jackson, WR Lucky Jackson, WR Dominic Lovett, EDGE Anthony Lucas, OG Mason Miller, OG Melvin Priestly, CB Eric Scott Jr., DL Chris Smith, OL Colby Sorsdal, S Jason Taylor II, DL Tyre West, CB Nick Whiteside, RB Roydell Williams and OL Michael Niese.

He suffered the calf issue in the spring and has yet to practice, but that is set to change. Conklin will presumably be activated from the PUP list and return to practice tomorrow. He will serve as a depth option behind Sam LaPorta.

Just yesterday, Joseph implied via social media that he would avoid the physically unable to perform list. So much for that. Joseph dealt with a recurring knee issue for the entire 2025 season, which was first reported on at the end of July 2025, roughly three months after the Lions made him the NFL’s highest-paid safety. Given Joseph’s post, one imagines he has a chance to resume practicing relatively soon, but only time will tell. Branch suffered an Achilles tendon rupture in Week 14 last year. As of June 13th, Lions coach Dan Campbell said there was no timetable for his return. The Lions also placed TE Tyler Conklin on the physically unable to perform list.

Conklin, 30, caught just 7-of-10 targets for 101 yards last year. He dealt with an early-season knee injury, but was ultimately just outplayed by rookie TE Oronde Gadsden. Conklin will likely serve as a steady depth option for the Lions. He does not appear to be fantasy-relevant at this stage in his career.

Gadsden was unable to deliver a high-end performance against the Patriots, but he continued to show off his ability to get open on in-breaking routes. The talent should serve him well in his second NFL season next year. The fifth-round rookie caught 49-of-68 targets for 664 yards and three touchdowns this season, far surpassing expectations given his draft capital. A knee injury suffered by veteran TE Tyler Conklin allowed Gadsden to remain active on game day in Week 3. He seized the opportunity, catching 5-of-6 targets for 46 yards in his first NFL game. Gadsden finished as the half-PPR TE16 this year as the Chargers spread the ball around down the stretch. Gadsden has a wide range of outcomes in 2026, but will probably be drafted as a low-end TE1 due to his upside.

A fourth-down go for the Chargers in the third quarter ended with Justin Herbert’s ball hitting Conklin directly in the face mask. His only actual catch of the game was delivered by Trey Lance on the final garbage time drive. The Chargers just don’t seem to get their tight ends involved enough for either Conklin or Oronde Gadsden II (1/14, 36 snaps to Conklin’s 20) to have real fantasy value at this point.

It was rookie TE Oronde Gadsden II, not Conklin, who filled in for Will Dissly (knee) against Denver. Gadsden was second on the team with seven targets on the day despite running just 17 pass routes. It would appear Conklin — who has two receptions on the season — is unplayable in all fantasy formats even with Dissly sidelined.

Dissly will sit with a knee injury, leaving Tyler Conklin as the Chargers’ No. 1 tight end against a tough Denver coverage unit. Rookie TE Oronde Gadsden, Jr. could also see some snaps with Dissly sidelined. Conklin won’t be playable in fantasy leagues outside the deepest formats.

The free agent addition split time with Will Dissly in his LA debut. Though Conklin technically led the team’s tight ends in all receiving categories, a weekly diet of two targets isn’t enough to put him on the streaming radar for fantasy purposes. Conklin also coughed up a fumble on a long gain that Ladd McConkey punched out of bounds, resulting in a penalty that negated some of the yards Conklin had just picked up. Neither LA tight end is in the fantasy picture for Week 2.

Gadsden and Tyler Conklin both logged three first-drive snaps and Conklin failed to secure his lone target. Gadsden has a long way to go before he becomes re-draft-relevant but he’s getting reps alongside Conklin, which is a good start.