The Detroit Lions have plenty of needs this offseason, but one of the biggest is improving their pass rush. Detroit had a pair of strong starters in Aidan Hutchinson and Al-Quadin Muhammad, but their depth was compromised with injuries and ineffectiveness between Josh Paschall and Marcus Davenport, which led Lions fans to dream big entering the offseason.
While many are holding on to the dream of a Maxx Crosby trade, an upgrade may not be necessary. Muhammad comes with some risk after a career year, but given the alternatives available, re-signing him may be the best first step to fix Detroit’s ability to get to the quarterback.
Re-Signing Al-Quadin Muhammad First Step in Fixing Lions’ Pass Rush
Muhammad’s free agency comes at the perfect time. After collecting just 15 sacks in his first seven seasons in the NFL, he almost matched that total with 11 sacks for the Lions last season. According to Pro Football Focus, he also set career highs with 53 pressures and a 15.0% pressure rate and was the Lions’ most consistent rusher outside of Hutchinson, who set a career-high with 14.5 sacks.
A career year is always the impetus to cash in, and the Lions have several reasons to think about giving Muhammad the bag. While he’s been a culture-setting player since joining Detroit’s practice squad during the 2024 season, there is some concern about regression for a player who spent the 2023 season out of football and will turn 31 next month.
This makes Spotrac’s $7.8 million market value projection a little risky. But it’s not like Detroit’s pass rush was completely broken with Muhammad as a starter. The Lions were tied for fourth in the NFL with 49 sacks last season, and their 24.1% pressure rate ranked 10th according to Pro Football Reference. If anything, the Lions should be looking for depth behind Hutchinson and Muhammad instead of a starter to replace him.
That becomes a lot more difficult when diving into this year’s free agent class. Sitting $9.6 million over the salary cap, according to Over The Cap, the Lions’ options are limited. While Muhammad’s price tag isn’t cheap, it’s a better value than signing Cameron Jordan ($6.7 million market value), Arden Key ($6.6 million market value), or A.J. Epenesa ($6.4 million market value). Even more expensive options, including Arnold Ebiketie ($9.0 million) and Joseph Ossai ($9.1 million), are not guaranteed to be more successful than Muhammad was last season, giving the Lions the same amount of risk.
Adding a pass-rusher in April’s draft would also be an option. But Auburn’s Keldric Faulk and Texas A&M’s Cashius Howell aren’t likely to match Muhammad’s production from last season. In the past 25 years, only 11 players have had 11 or more sacks in their rookie season, and some of those names include long-term busts, including Mark Anderson, Darren Howard, and Kamerion Wimbley.
Even if Muhammad fails to replicate last season, he could be a valuable rotation player if the Lions shore up the players behind him. It leads the path to Muhammad returning for another year in Detroit and the Lions to focus their attention on creating a deeper pass rush for 2026.