Detroit Lions defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch will see reduced practice time to keep him fresh throughout the season, coach Jim Schwartz said Thursday.
Schwartz told the Detroit Free Press that he hopes the move will keep Vanden Bosch on the field during game day. Vanden Bosch missed the last five games of 2010 with a neck injury and tweaked his shoulder in a preseason game against the Cleveland Browns on Aug. 19.
"I think just where he is and age and different things like that, we're going to try to take some wear and tear off him during the week," Schwartz said. "So there's probably not many Wednesdays that he's going to practice over the course of the season."
Vanden Bosch expressed his support for Schwartz's plan.
"There's very few people I have more respect for than coach Schwartz, and I think he's been around football a lot longer than I can ever think," Vanden Bosch said. "He has a good plan and my role coming to this team is help this team win anyway I can. I feel good about the way things have gone and, like I said, I physically feel great so I think on Sundays it will pay off for us."
Vanden Bosch returned to practice Thursday after missing Wednesday's practice with what the Lions' injury report listed as "non-injury" reasons.
