Ameer Abdullah was waived Tuesday by the Detroit Lions.
Abdullah, a second-round draft pick of the Lions in 2015, has played in only three games this season. The former Husker running back has one rush for one yard, two catches for 18 yards and an average of 26.8 yards on four kickoff returns.
The 25-year-old’s most productive season came as a rookie in 2015, when he had 597 yards rushing, 183 receiving and three total touchdowns. Injuries robbed him of all but two games in 2016, but he rebounded in 2017 with 714 total yards of offense and five touchdowns.
He’s spent most of this season inactive, though, and slid to fourth on Detroit’s depth chart at running back. According to the NFL Network, the Lions tried to trade Abdullah before last month’s deadline but nothing came to fruition. They waived him Tuesday to make room for two free agent signings.
Abdullah was in the final year of his rookie contract worth a base salary of more than $876,000. He was set to become an unrestricted free agent after this season.
Abdullah ranks second on Nebraska’s career rushing chart with 4,588 yards and is fifth with 39 career rushing touchdowns. He was a second-team All-American in 2014, when he was also a finalist for the Doak Walker and Paul Hornung Awards.
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