Lions Place OL Halapoulivaati Vaitai On Injured Reserve

That means Vaitai, Detroit’s starter at right guard, will miss the first four games of the season before he’s eligible to return.  

Vaitai, 29, was drafted by the Eagles in the fifth round out of TCU in 2016. He signed a four-year deal worth $2.56 million and made a base salary of $720,000 for the 2019 season. 

Vaitai was testing the market as an unrestricted free agent for the first time in 2020 when he signed a five-year, $50 million deal with the Lions. 

In 2021, Vaitai appeared in 15 games and made 15 starts for the Lions. Pro Football Focus had him rated as the No. 29 guard out of 82 qualifying players.