Detroit Lions DE Aidan Hutchinson missed 12 games with a broken leg in 2024 but could challenge for the NFL lead in sacks if he stays healthy.
The Detroit Lions open the 2025 regular season Sunday, Sept. 7, against the Green Bay Packers. Here is a position-by-position look at the Lions’ defense and special teams for 2025.
Defensive line
Aidan Hutchinson was having a Defensive Player of the Year-type season when he broke his leg last October against the Dallas Cowboys. He’s healthy now, looking menacing again and the biggest reason to believe the Lions defense could elevate to a top-10 unit this fall.
The Lions are thin at edge rusher, but have a big, long, powerful 1-2 punch in Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport. Hutchinson had 7½ sacks in five games last season and could challenge for the NFL sack title if stays healthy this year. Davenport is a violent run defender who played just six games the past two seasons (with the Lions in 2024 and Minnesota Vikings in 2023). The Lions may need to manage his workload to ensure he makes it to January.
Rookie first-round pick Tyleik Williams is expected to fill a starting role at defensive tackle next to DJ Reader while Alim McNeill recovers from a torn ACL. McNeill should return around midseason and is the Lions’ best interior pass rusher. Williams played sparingly in preseason games, but gives the Lions a second big body to clog rushing lanes. Reader, 31, is nearing the end of his career but coming off a career-high three-sack season.
The Lions lost Levi Onwuzurike for the year to a torn ACL before the season and are shorthanded at defensive end with Josh Paschal out at least four weeks on the non-football-injury list. Free-agent signee Roy Lopez should play the top backup role at nose tackle, Pat O’Connor adds depth inside at tackle and at the big end spot and Al-Quadin Muhammad supplies pass rush off the bench. Young linemen Mekhi Wingo and Chris Smith made the team as reserves, but the Lions still are in the market for help up front.
Linebackers
Jack Campbell blossomed last year, making 131 tackles to earn a second-team All-Pro nod from Pro Football Focus, and the third-year linebacker earned high praise from coaches and teammates for his command of the defense this summer.
“Jack’s taken another step and another year of growth,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “We know the physical aspect of this for him and the guy doesn’t get tired. And if he does, you wouldn’t know it, just the way he plays. Always going for the football. (And) he can play one step ahead cause he can key and diagnose pretty quick.”
The Lions have one of the deepest linebacking corps in the NFL, and their starters are versatile enough to help new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard disguise his rush packages. Derrick Barnes returns to the strong-side linebacker spot after missing most of last season with a knee injury, and veteran Alex Anzalone is back on the weak side after skipping offseason workouts in a contract dispute. All three players can rush the passer and are above average against the run.
Grant Stuard signed as a free agent this offseason and could see time in coverage packages off the bench. Both he and Trevor Nowaske are core special teams players, and Zach Cunningham adds veteran experience off-ball if injuries strike this unit again. Malcolm Rodriguez should return in the second half of the season from the ACL injury he suffered last year.
Defensive backs
The Lions kept just eight defensive backs on their initial roster and are extremely thin in the secondary. Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph are arguably the best safety tandem in the NFL, but the Lions used cornerback Rock Ya-Sin as their top backup most of the preseason.
Joseph led the NFL with nine interceptions last season but had just one in training camp. He signed a four-year extension this offseason that made him the highest-paid safety in the NFL. Branch is the Lions’ most versatile defensive back. He’s a big hitter who has taken a step forward with his coverage skills and could be poised for a huge year.
At cornerback, they signed D.J. Reed in free agency to pair with last year’s first-round pick, Terrion Arnold, on the outside. Arnold struggled with penalties early last season but played better down the stretch and has been even more consistent this summer. He and Reed spent training camp rotating between the boundary and field spots and Sheppard will change his coverage plans based on opponents this fall.
Amik Robertson is ticketed for starting slot duties and is next in line at outside cornerback if something happens to Reed or Arnold. The Lions saw Avonte Maddox as a backup safety when they signed him, but kept him at slot most of the summer. And Khalil Dorsey will play mostly on special teams. Collectively, the Lions need more takeaways from their cornerbacks this fall.
Special teams
Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp said he never entertained the idea of bringing in competition for punter Jack Fox, kicker Jack Bates and long snapper Hogan Hatten this summer.
“No. 1, these guys are incredible players and No. 2, I think the biggest thing there is when you have the right players, their passion is to be the very, very best player they can be – and really their passion’s to be probably the best player in the league at their position,” Fipp said.
Fox already can stake claim to being the best in the NFL: He led the league in gross punting at 51 yards per punt last season and was an easy choice as first-team All-Pro. He’s accurate, strong-legged and a weapon on fake punts with his arm. Hatten won the long-snapping job last year in part for his coverage ability, and Bates had an up-and-down summer kicking field goals but has an anvil for a leg. The former Michigan Panther made 26 of 29 field goals last season, with a long of 58 yards.
Stuard and running backs Sione Vaki and Craig Reynolds likely will share kick-return duties, while Kalif Raymond will handle punts. The Lions have solid coverage units led by Stuard, Vaki and Dorsey, who Fipp called “one of the great gunners in the game of football right now.”
Detroit Lions defense depth chart
DE: Aidan Hutchinson, Al-Quadin Muhammad
DT: D.J. Reader, Chris Smith
DT: Tyleik Williams, Roy Lopez
DE: Marcus Davenport, Pat O'Connor
LB: Derrick Barnes, Trevor Nowaske
LB: Jack Campbell, Zach Cunningham
LB: Alex Anzalone, Grant Stuard
CB: D.J. Reed, Amik Robertson
CB: Terrion Arnold, Khalil Dorsey
S: Brian Branch, Avonte Maddox
S: Kerby Joseph, Rock Ya-Sin
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions defense: Healthy Aidan Hutchinson promises boost
Category: Football