Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press does not expect Kevin Smith (ankle) to be active for Week 14. The Lions are expected to roll with Maurice Morris, Keiland Williams, and perhaps Aaron Brown against the Vikings. Fantasy owners should hope that Smith capitalizes on the time off so that he can get closer to full health for Week 15 against the Raiders. He obviously needs to be on benches this week.

Kevin Smith (ankle) returned to practice on Friday. Smith has his helmet on and is going through warmups, so it looks like he's going to give it a go. His status for Sunday's game will be determined by how his ankle responds to the rigors of practice. Check back later in the day for an update.

According to beat writer Dave Birkett, it's "clear" that Kevin Smith's ankle isn't feeling as good as it was last week with 10 days of rest. Smith is optimistic about playing this week, but it's hard to imagine him taking a full workload at this point. He concedes that he'll have to practice Friday "to give myself the confidence that I can make certain movements and certain cuts to be able to produce on gameday." Unless Friday's practice reports are glowing, we'd steer clear versus the Vikings.

Kevin Smith (ankle) "hopes" to practice on Friday.

Kevin Smith (ankle) was not participating in Lions practice Thursday.

Kevin Smith (ankle) was not participating at Lions practice Wednesday.

Lions coach Jim Schwartz was noncommittal when asked about Kevin Smith's (ankle) Week 14 status at his Monday press conference. Schwartz did say the Lions expected something to "come up" with Smith's ankle against the Saints, and that he doesn't believe "he's in a worse spot" than he was last week. Even before Smith crumpled to the ground untouched Sunday, he was having great difficulty cutting, and appeared nowhere near 100 percent. His status will be updated Wednesday, if not sooner.

Kevin Smith has confirmed he aggravated his "high" ankle sprain in Sunday's loss to the Saints. We have "high" in quotation marks because it's still uncertain if that's what Smith has actually been dealing with, or if the Lions are just playing fast and loose with injury terminology. Typically, a player would not be active just 10 days after suffering a high-ankle sprain. Smith also confirmed he was playing hurt even before leaving tonight's game, saying he couldn't cut. That was apparent to the naked eye even though he managed to rack up 80 yards on only 12 touches. His status will be updated at coach Jim Schwartz's Monday press conference.

Kevin Smith was forced from Sunday night's game against the Saints in the third quarter with an aggravation of his right ankle injury. Smith was injured attempting to cut at the end of a nine-yard catch. He was able to jog off the field under his own power, but was seen angrily throwing his equipment on the sideline, an indication his night is likely through. Despite obviously being at far less than 100 percent, Smith was again racking up yards, going for 80 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown on just 12 touches.

Kevin Smith (ankle) is active for Sunday night's game against the Saints.