DeAndre Levy Injury Update: Lions Place Star LB on IR

Detroit Lions star linebacker DeAndre Levy was placed on injured reserve Wednesday and will miss the rest of the 2015 season due to a lingering hip injury.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network provided the ominous update on Levy's status as the 1-7 Lions suffer yet another big blow amid a lost year.

Levy has had problems with injuries throughout 2015. Shortly after signing a four-year, $33 million extension in August, he ran into hip problems that sidelined him for the first four games of the season.

It got much worse thereafter too. After making his debut in Week 5, he was pulled after a half when he reaggravated the injury. Levy underwent surgery to repair the hip on Oct. 14. 

MLive.com's Justin Rogers alluded to how displeasing his year ultimately was:

Levy has been a centerpiece of the Lions defense, starting every game in the past two seasons, with a career-high 121-tackle year in 2014.  He's a linebacker with speed and the capability of delivering the big momentum-swinging hit, a vital asset that many defenses look for. 

Stephen Tulloch and Josh Bynes have stepped up in Detroit's linebacker corps to be the team's two leading tacklers, but the team nevertheless sports the worst record in the league after making the playoffs in 2014. The defense ranks dead last, yielding 30.6 points per game.

Getting Levy back for any sort of time this season would have been a bonus—or at least would have salvaged some collective morale. With a probable regime change on the horizon and this season already a failure, it makes sense to ease Levy back into action and have him ready to go for 2016.

Stats courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com