ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Joseph Fauria practiced for the first time in six weeks Wednesday and a day later seems to be continuing improvement as he aims for a return from his sprained ankle.

"Feeling good, you know," Fauria said. "Just trying to get out there as soon as possible."

Fauria didn’t indicate how close he is to playing or what is still keeping him from being able to practice fully, as he was limited Wednesday. Detroit Lions coach Jim Caldwell didn’t expand much on Fauria’s health or status, but did say he looked "all right" during practice Wednesday.

One of the things Fauria noticed, though, was a change in the Detroit offense from when he was injured during an off-field accident with his dog between Weeks 3 and 4 and the one he returned to this week.

Most of that, he said, is due to the Lions’ continued injuries at tight end, where Brandon Pettigrew, Eric Ebron and Fauria have all missed at least one game. It has led to some challenges for Detroit offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi.

As injuries piled up with Detroit’s tight ends, it made watching that much more difficult for Fauria.

"I’ve never had this big of a time period of missing football," Fauria said. "Especially at this level. With my success last year and wanting to add on to that, it took quite a halt. It’s tough mentally, and it’s tough like that. This is a challenge that I will overcome and I will get better from it, and I can’t wait to be out there as soon as possible."

The biggest challenge for Fauria is returning to the field. For Lombardi, it is planning on how much he could potentially use him and how he would use him.

"You want to have some things if he’s ready, but not be dependent on him," Lombardi said. "That’s the hard part. When you’re like 'all right, he’s going to do these 10 things, major part of our game plan. No one else can really fill that role' and then he’s gone in the first quarter.

"You’re like, 'Uh-oh. We’ve got to come up with some plays here.' So you just got to have some plays for him but not be dependent on him."

Prior to Detroit’s multiple tight end injuries, the Lions weren’t throwing the ball to their tight ends all that often. Combined this season, Lions tight ends have 22 receptions for 220 yards and one touchdown.

More telling, Lions tight ends have been targeted a total of 42 times this season -- 20 for Ebron, 13 for Pettigrew, six for Fauria, two for Kellen Davis and one for Jordan Thompson. Overall, tight ends have been targeted by Matthew Stafford on 14 percent of his 299 pass attempts this season.

Part of that, though, has been due to the injuries and the rotating players at the position. Stafford has had less time with them and therefore less of a comfort level. If there is anything in the Detroit offense that has been a surprise this season, it is how the tight ends have been used because of Lombardi’s background in New Orleans with Jimmy Graham.

He indicated, though, that production from the tight ends might soon change.

"Certainly the plays were called that if he was open, we’re hoping to throw it to him," Lombardi said. "I think we threw it to (them) and maybe we just didn’t complete as many as we were hoping to.

"But listen, I think this will be a tight end-friendly offense. Especially when those guys get back, I think you’ll see the growth."