Detroit Lions rookie CB Bill Bentley is expected to return to practice this week, according to head coach Jim Schwartz. Bentley missed missed the Lions' Week 2 loss to the San Francisco 49ers with a head injury.

Bentley's return is greatly needed for the Lions, who are very thin in the secondary because of injuries. Last week the Lions were missing Bentley, CB Chris Houston (high ankle sprain), and safety Louis Delmas (knee). The Lions also lost backup CB Drayton Florence against the 49ers when he broke his right forearm; Florence is expected to miss a significant amount of time.

Bentley, a third-round draft pick out of Louisiana-Lafayette, suffered a concussion in the Lions' opening game against the St. Louis Rams, but Schwartz is optimistic that Bentley is on the right path to recovery.

"He’s improved," Schwartz said on 97.1. "We’ll get him back on the practice field and just see where he goes from there. But he is improved. I think you saw, across the league, Darrelle Revis missed a game with a concussion, Bentley missed a game with a concussion. I think that we’re witnessing the NFL’s increased awareness of concussions and how to recover from them and all those different things.

The Lions take on the Tennessee Titans in Nashville at 1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday.

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