Marvin Jones announces he's stepping away from Lions; WR later released by team

Detroit Lions wide receiver Marvin Jones announced on Tuesday that he was stepping away from the team due to family matters. He subsequently was released by the team, NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero reported.

“To be brief, I am stepping away from the team to take care of personal family matters,” he wrote in part in an Instagram post. “Although this was no easy decision, I cannot be the person/player that I need to be for this team as well as tend to my family from afar.”

Jones was inactive for the first time this season in Detroit’s Week 7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

He rejoined the Lions for his 12th NFL season, signing a one-year, $3 million pact this spring. The veteran has seen little production, though, having tallied just five receptions on 10 targets for 35 yards and zero touchdowns. His targets are tied for seventh on the team with injured running back David Montgomery as Amon-Ra St. Brown has continued to emerge as one of the top young wideouts in the league. Rookie tight end Sam LaPorta also has proven to be an instant success, while receivers Kalif Raymond and Josh Reynolds have been surprising contributors and Jameson Williams has returned from suspension.

Though Jones did not mention anything regarding a possible retirement, if this is it for the 33-year-old, he turned in quite a productive career after being selected in the fifth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals.

He was with the Bengals for four seasons (one on injured reserve), spent the 2021-22 seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars and parts of six seasons with the Lions over two stints, first from 2017 to 2020 before coming back to Motown this year.

For his career, Jones has played in 151 games with 118 starts, recording 547 catches for 7,421 yards and 58 touchdowns.