ALLEN PARK — The Lions’ injury list has dwindled as they approach the third preseason game on Saturday at the Oakland Raiders.

Running back Mikel Leshoure, who has never played in a game for the Lions, practiced again on Wednesday and is on track to play against the Raiders according to coach Jim Schwartz.

It will be his first game since he was drafted in the second round in 2011.

Leshoure is coming off an hamstring injury which forced him to miss more than two weeks of camp. Last year he tore his Achilles early in camp and was placed on injured reserve, missing the entire season.

He split reps with Kevin Smith with the starting unit in Wednesday’s practice.

Returning Wednesday were defensive tackles Sammie Hill (back) and Corey Williams (knee). Kyle Vanden Bosch (knee) went through a whole practice after just working individual drills on Monday. The players were off on Tuesday.

Still missing were Stefan Logan (ankle), Travis Lewis (knee) and Louis Delmas (knee).

Pride was on the line after practice with a few foot races. Rookie Bill Bentley beat Alphonso Smith twice. Chris Houston and Jonte Green split a pair of races. For more on that see TheOaklandPress.com later today.

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ALLEN PARK — It wouldn’t be NFL training camp without a couple injuries.

Lions left tackle Jeff Backus and running back Mikel Leshoure were sidelined during Saturday’s training camp session.

Backus injured his thumb during one-on-ones and went inside for X-rays. He returned to the field, but not to action.

“We’re going to wait and see. It wasn’t real determinant right away (on the X-rays), but there were some findings on it so we’ll look at it later this afternoon,’’ coach Jim Schwartz said.

An offensive lineman could play with a broken thumb, but no sense to push it on second day of camp.

Leshoure made it until deep in the practice when he grabbed his hamstring.

Schwartz was uncertain of the severity.

“I’ll be good, I’m fine, I’m straight,’’ said Leshoure who is coming off Achilles’ tendon surgery.

Rookie defensive end Ronnell Lewis, who missed Friday’s opening session with a tight back, was back at work on Saturday.

Jahvid Best, Ryan Broyles, Jonathan Scott and Chris Greenwood remained out.

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Three reasons the Lions' running game suffered last season: Injuries, injuries, injuries.

Enough of that. What are the odds all three will be injured again this season? Here are three reasons the running game should be better.

1. Jahvid Best gained weight and strength in the offseason, coming off a concussion. He’s rarin’ to go after playing in just six games last season.

2. Mikel Leshoure is one talented, solid running back who has amazed his teammates. It’s just that fans haven’t had a chance to see him run since he tore an Achilles’ early in training camp last year. During his first team drills of the offseason at minicamp he got cheered by his teammates and seemed to create a buzz when he got his mitts on the ball. Of course he’ll be suspended for the first two games and will have to catch up after that. His suspension will open the door for ...

3. Motivated? That’s Kevin Smith. He was humbled a bit last year when the season started without him. He kept working out and finally got a call from the Lions in November. In his second game back he had 16 carries for 140 yards in the win over Carolina. He just couldn’t keep the ankle healthy.

(Until the start of training camp, the Lowdown lists will appear daily, Monday through Friday. Follow @PaulaPasche on Twitter. Email her at Paula.Pasche@oakpress.com.)

ALLEN PARK — The latest news we have of Lions RB Mikel Leshoure was of his two marijuana possession charges in February and March.

Until now.

Wide receiver Nate Burleson talked about Leshoure on Tuesday.

“I’m a big fan of Leshoure. Like I said, he was one of the most ready rookies I’ve seen since I’ve been in the league and that’s 10 years. If he can get healthy, he told me (Monday), ‘I’m going to take my time and heal up, but I’m going to be ready for the season.’

“I don’t want to speak on his behalf. If that is true, he’s going to help us a lot in that running game,’’ Burleson added.

After rupturing an Achilles’ tendon in training camp last year Leshoure missed his entire rookie season. Lions management has been optimistic he’ll be ready to go in the fall.

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Three things we learned about the Lions this week:

1. Former Lion Alex Karras is one of almost 1,200 former NFL players to sue the NFL because of concussion damage. It was revealed this week Karras has been suffering from dementia for seven years. Not too many of us young folks (hold the comments please) remember seeing Karras play. He was a four-time Pro Bowler. He was also suspended for a season for gambling. I remember him most as Mongo in “Blazing Saddles” where he punched a horse. A classic. Here’s hoping the best for Karras.

2. After what seems like a long winter, the players start their offseason workouts at the Lions practice facility next week. Could see some stories unfold when the veterans get a chance to talk with the youngsters in particular Mikel Leshoure, Nick Fairley and Johnny Culbreath.

3. That the remote chance that the Lions would draft cornerback Janoris Jenkins got more remote this week when it was revealed that he had not learned his lesson after getting kicked off the Florida team because of marijuana transgressions. It came to light this week that he continued to smoke marijuana after he transferred to North Alabama. There’s speculation he could drop out of the first round due to character issues.

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1. Three members of the 2011 draft class have worked their way out of the Lions’ favor but not off the roster. Marijuana charges for Mikel Leshoure were revealed this week, Nick Fairley was stopped this week in Alabama and cited for marijuana possession and, of course, Johnny Culbreath was charged with marijuana possession in January. All three are expected to step up this season after injuries slowed them down or in Leshoure’s case kept him off the field for his rookie season. Coach Jim Schwartz seems to be a fair guy, but I wouldn’t want to face his wrath if I were one of these three.2. Last summer the Lions didn’t sign LB Bobby Carpenter until camp was under way even though he had played well in 10 games for them in 2010. Carpenter signed as a free agent with the Patriots on Thursday. He was solid on special teams and played well at linebacker when he got his shot. He was an ironman of sorts too, playing in all 16 games last season with three starts. The Lions still have backups Ashlee Palmer and Doug Hogue, but they will miss Carpenter.

3. Gregg Williams revealed himself in a pre-game audio that was released Thursday. The former Saints defensive coordinator was firing up the Saints before the 49ers playoff game, a week after New Orleans had beaten the Lions. I don’t for a moment think that Williams had this history of paying players to knock opponents out of the game, but didn’t use it against the Lions. You know the NFL has folks closely examining every game from last season and the Lions played at New Orleans twice. I don’t think this is nearly over, I think it’s just getting started.

4. If there was a chance the Lions were looking to draft cornerbacks Janoris Jenkins (can’t see it at all) or Dre Kirkpatrick (certainly a possibility) I believe they’ll think twice now. Both have marijuana possession charges on their resume. Kirkpatrick (Alabama) and Jenkins (North Alabama) are considered among the best cornerbacks in the draft but not sure the Lions should take a chance on them in the light of what happened with three draft picks from last year.

5. The Lions’ new Nike uniforms just aren’t much different. But love the new gloves with the Lions logo across the back of both hands.

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Look at it this way, the Lions drafted five players in April 2011.

Since January three of the five have been charged with marijuana possession.

In order, in January offensive tackle Johnny Culbreath was charged with simple possession of marijuana in Orangeburg County, South Carolina. He paid a fine of $412.

Running back Mikel Leshoure was charged with possession of marijuana on Feb. 18 and again on March 12 in Berrien County. He paid a $485 fine on the first violation and skipped his Monday arraignment on the second. Not good.

Neither Leshoure or Culbreath played a snap in their rookie season due to injuries.

Defensive tackle Nick Fairley was charged with marijuana possession on Tuesday in Mobile, Ala.

Fairley was slowed down in his rookie season with a foot injury. He played in just 10 games and had 15 tackles and a sack.

Lions management was counting on all three to come back strong.

Legal ramifications are still unknown. NFL suspensions are also up in the air. A suspension usually comes after the second offense.

The Lions can’t be too happy with the three players. In fact in a statement on Tuesday four words stood out: “We are extremely disappointed.”

Coach Jim Schwartz expects the best. I would expect him to be tough on all three. Facing a judge might be easier then going one-on-one with an angry (and rightfully so) Schwartz.

Of course the jury is still out on the 2011 draft class. But three out of five haven’t got off to a great start.

Wide receiver Titus Young, who got better as his rookie season wore on, and linebacker Doug Hogue, who contributed mostly on special teams, have stayed clean in the off-season.

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Certainly Mikel Leshoure made mistakes in the past few months — mistakes which led to two charges of marijuana possession within a month.

To top it off the Lions running back skipped out on Monday’s arraignment in Berrien County.

Still, I was shocked at the reaction on Twitter on Monday. Many fans called for the Lions to trade him or whatever it takes to get drive him out of town and then draft another running back.

That’s just nonsense. Leshoure will go through the legal system for the second offense. He paid a $485 fine for his first violation.

It seems unlikely he’ll be suspended by the NFL, although it is a possibility.

It seems highly likely he’ll get face time with coach Jim Schwartz to talk about the situation and will be told to clean up his act. He’ll have to deal with his peers and, of course, with jokes about trying to eat the evidence.

But then I would expect he’ll take on a big role in the offense just like everyone expected. After missing his rookie season with a torn Achilles’ tendon, he’s been working out at the Lions’ facility in the offseason. When Stephen Tulloch signed his big deal, he mentioned he’d seen Leshoure working out — actually running — and was impressed.

All along Lions management has been optimistic he’ll be ready for training camp.

At 6-foot and 227 pounds, he’s rock solid and will share reps with Jahvid Best and Kevin Smith. In his few days at camp last year before his injury Leshoure was impressive.

He’s made mistakes, but not enough to be chased out of town.

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The issue today is not whether marijuana should be legalized.

It’s the fact that Lions running back Mikel Leshoure was dumb enough to not take heed after his first arrest for marijuana possession in February.

Instead, reports came out today that Leshoure was arrested on March 12 while a passenger in a car and was trying to eat the evidence after police pulled the car over in Berrien County.

To make matters apparently worse, he failed to show up for his arraignment on Monday for possession of marijuana and so a bench warrant was issued for his arrest.

Dumb on top of dumb on top of stupid.

This is not a good start for the running back who has not played a snap in the NFL after he tore an Achilles’ tendon in training camp last August.

In his brief time at camp before the injury, Leshoure was all of that. He was impressive running and catching the ball. He was a rookie (a second-round pick out of Illinois) but he didn’t look like one on most days.

Not sure what the consequences will be on this one yet. The Lions need Leshoure to be healthy to give the offense a more balanced attack.

Coach Jim Schwartz always claims he doesn’t have a dog house, we’ll see if that’s still the case when OTAs start on April 16.

The Lions issued a statement that they are aware of the situation but for the time being have no further comment.

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Mikel Leshoure, the Lions running back, is expected to be arraigned today on a charge of marijuana possession, second offense.This is according to a report from ESPN 96.1, with the walk-in arraignment confirmed by WOOD radio with the Berrien County clerk.

Leshoure, a second-round draft pick a year ago, missed his entire rookie season after rupturing an Achilles’ tendon in training camp.

He is expected to be healthy for training camp this year and play a significant role in the Lions’ running game.

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ALLEN PARK — Before rookie RB Mikel Leshoure tore an Achilles’ and was declared out for the season at Monday’s practice, there was some good news. RT Gosder Cherilus and WR Titus Young were back on the practice field.

Neither had practiced for a week.

Cherilus is coming off microfracture knee surgery and has had some lingering soreness which is not surprising. Cherilus lined up in some team periods, but was far from practicing 100 percent.

“We didn’t want to overdo it and not be able to manage it,’’ coach Jim Schwartz said.

Young has been out with a leg injury. Schwartz said he ran a little on Sunday so they were going to ease him into practice on Monday.

“He didn’t compete against other players where he had to adjust. We’ll take it slow with him and give him a little more each time. It shouldn’t be a long-term thing,’’ Schwartz said.

OT Jason Fox, who went down Saturday with a foot injury, is visiting Dr. Bob Anderson in Charlotte, N.C., today. Schwartz said they had not received word on his condition.

Rookie DT Nick Fairley underwent surgery on his broken foot last week in Charlotte.

LB Bobby Carpenter didn’t practice Monday because he’s sick with the flu.

RB Maurice Morris is still out with a broken hand but said he expects to be back before the start of the regular season.

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ALLEN PARK — Missing time at training camp is especially crucial for a rookie. Even more so this year. Thanks to the NFL lockout, rookies have been thrown into the fire at training camp.

Two of the Lions five drafted rookies — DT Nick Fairley and WR Titus Young — have come up with injuries less than a week into training camp.

While Fairley didn’t seem to think his foot injury was too serious after someone stepped on it during a pass-rush drill on Monday, coach Jim Schwartz couldn’t declare it short-term or long-term on Tuesday. That isn’t a great sign for Fairley whose left foot was in an orthopedic boot on Tuesday.

“(We’re) having a lot of different people look at his stuff. He’s down for now,’’ coach Jim Schwartz said after practice.

Young practiced on Friday and has been out ever since with a leg injury.

Both are missing valuable time and lessening their chances to make an immediate impact on the team.

Running back Mikel Leshoure, a second-round pick, seems to be fitting in quickly with the Lions’ offense.

Doug Hogue, a fifth-round pick linebacker, is making the most of camp so far. With many free agent linebackers unable to practice until Thursday he’s getting plenty of reps.

“It’s fast, I’m still earning the system and things like that. These guys know where they’re going. An inch off makes the difference, I’m getting the gist of it, learning the speed,’’ Hogue said.

Offensive tackle Johnny Culbreath, a seventh-round pick, is also getting plenty of reps with both starting tackles — Jeff Backus and Gosder Cherilus — sidelined with injuries.

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Three things that must happen for the Lions’ offense to be effective.

1. Quarterback Matthew Stafford must stay healthy. After shoulder surgery, he strengthened his upper back through rehab which should make him stronger and able to take big hits and still get up.

2. Wide receiver Titus Young and running back Mikel Leshoure — both rookies — need to learn the offense and learn it quickly once training camp starts. Both have worked one-on-one with Stafford during player workouts which gives them a jump on the situation. But since they haven’t had the luxury of OTAs or minicamps, they will naturally be a little behind the veterans.

3. The offensive line must be solid. Right guard Stephen Peterman, who was playing on a wonky foot most of last season, is healthy which should help. Right tackle Gosder Cherilus, who is coming off microfracture knee surgery, expects to be 100 percent for the start of training camp.

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Three things that will surprise you at training camp:

1. It shouldn’t be a surprise, but count on veteran DE Kyle Vanden Bosch to enter camp as one of the most in-shape and conditioned players. He was a standout at the players’ workouts. It’s not like the other guys were winded, but Vanden Bosch clearly was into it and ready to go following offseason neck surgery.

2. Rookies Titus Young (WR) and Mikel Leshoure (RB) should fit in quickly. Even though they play skill positions and haven’t had the benefit of OTAs or minicamps, the two worked out with Matthew Stafford during the players’ workouts to get a headstart on camp.

3. Seeing Dre’ Bly back in a Lions’ jersey. Not saying this will happen, but Bly is looking to get back in the NFL after a season off. He’s in good shape and worked out with the Lions’ players at their voluntary workouts. It’s a longshot -- he was cut by the Lions at the end of camp last season. I guess that’s what would make it a surprise.

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Three things you are guaranteed to see in Lions’ training camp:

1. A healthy Matthew Stafford whose has built up strength in his shoulders and upper back following offseason surgery. His build is noticeably different. But in the players’ offseason workouts he still had zip on the ball like always. You’ll also notice he appears to be even more of a leader. It’s a role that suits him.

2. A first look at rookie WR Titus Young and you will say “he’s so skinny.” He’s nearly 6-foot and 175 pounds. His spindly legs and thin physique suggest that maybe he needs to add Big Macs to his diet (just kidding). But, darned he is thin. However he’s got good hands and speed.

3. Unlike Young, rookie Mikel Leshoure is one solid running back. He’s a big back, not in the mold of Jahvid Best. They should provide a good one-two punch at the position. It’s nearly impossible to tell from the limited offseason workouts how he’ll handle running the ball in the NFL, but he certainly has the right stuff.

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Three biggest offseason moves for the Lions so far:

1 — Drafting DT Nick Fairley with the 13th overall pick. The defensive line was already strong, Fairley takes it another step. With Fairley, Ndamukong Suh, Corey Williams and Sammie Hill rotating in and out at defensive tackle, the opponent will get no mercy. No D lineman should play every snap anyway. With this rotation, the defensive line should be just as strong late in the fourth quarter as it is to start the game. Aaron Rodgers and Jay Cutler can’t be too happy about this addition which is, of course, just the point.

2 — The free agent signing of safety Erik Coleman prior to the NFL lockout. This signing seemed to go by without much fanfare, but Coleman could plug in as a starter opposite Louis Delmas. In fact, the two have spent time during the offseason in Miami with Delmas teaching Coleman the Lions’ system as much as he can.

3 — Tie between the drafting of WR Titus Young and RB Mikel Leshoure, both in the second round. These were not considered positions of big need, but the offense will have much more depth and flexibility with those two on the roster. Young, who is so skinny, has good hands and speed. Leshoure is a big back and will literally beef up the Lions’ running game which at times last season was a weak link.

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Quarterback Matthew Stafford, at the ripe old age of 23, sparkled as an offensive leader during the offseason workouts last week and the other session in May.

With his shoulder healthy, he seemed to make it through the vigorous workouts without a problem.

Rookies Titus Young, the wide receiver, and Mikel Leshoure, the big running back, won’t have the luxury of OTAs and minicamps, so Stafford is trying to give them a jumpstart before they reach training camp.

He remembers how important the offseason program was to him after he was drafted first overall in 2009.

“It was huge, especially for a quarterback. You almost have to have it. These are some guys at some positions that especially a running back has traditionally done well early in their career. And we can put them in situations for them to succeed,’’ Stafford said. “It’s not every down they have to be counted on to be the man.’’

Stafford has been a leader from the get-go. It’s a role that fits him well.

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Rookie running back Mikel Leshoure was one of the rookies who took advantage of the Lions’ offseason workouts last week at Detroit Country Day.

The second-round pick out of Illinois got one-on-one training from quarterback Matthew Stafford as did rookie wide receiver Titus Young.

For the rookies not only do they have to learn the playbook when training camp start, but they also have to get to know their teammates. They both got a jumpstart on that through the workout sessions.

“I’m really happy to get out here with these guys. You guys are here you can see the competitive camaraderie coming together. Just to get out here and get a one-on-one feeling with these guys and get to know them personally is the best thing you can do. You can’t get that type of relationship over the phone,’’ Leshoure said.

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BEVERLY HILLS — The Lions will wrap up their second four-day session of team workouts on Friday at Detroit Country Day. Obviously they couldn’t make them mandatory, but those who have attended have discovered how beneficial they are.

The last ones off the field on Thursday were quarterback Matthew Stafford and rookie wide receiver Titus Young. The pair spent 10-15 minutes with Stafford teaching Young some of the basic passing routes. Young, a second-round draft pick out of Boise State, seems to have good hands.

Before Stafford worked with Young, he was one-on-one with rookie running back MIkel Leshoure, a second-round pick out of Illinois, showing him the basic run routes.

With no offseason training due to the NFL lockout, it’s the rookies who can benefit the most from these sessions. Although Stafford admitted it keeps him sharp too.

With Michael Knight of the Art of Strength running the workout part of these sessions, there has been much structure and much sweat.

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If you’ve always wanted to meet Lions running back Jahvid Best tonight is your chance. He just Tweeted that he’ll be making an appearance at Menard’s in Davison from 5:30 to 8 p.m. (Hey, it’s not THAT far away.)

Best was one of the 30 or so Lions who participated at the informal workouts last week. Rest during the offseason has been the best medicine for the turf toe that slowed him down most of last season.

“It had its days but basically every time I tried to cut or plant or explode I was feeling it in my feet, so it was hindering my abilities to be the player I am,’’ Best said explaining his situation last season, his rookie year.

He is excited about playing with Mikel Leshoure, the Lions’ second-round draft pick. “They felt like he was the right guy so I’m happy about it. As soon as he got drafted I got his number and I was telling him we’re going to need a nickname,’’ Best said.

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