Last season, the Detroit Lions saw their Super Bowl dreams take a significant hit as they lost star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson to a fractured fibula and tibia in Week 6 against the Dallas Cowboys. The third-year pass rusher had gotten to a ridiculous start and was considered a potential Defensive Player of the Year candidate.
At the same time, there was a thought that if the Lions made it to Super Bowl 59, Hutchinson could’ve returned to the field. However, those dreams never materialized for the Lions, who still finished with the No. 1 seed in the NFC but got bounced in the divisional round.
That said, fans received great news from the standout defender on Thursday, who spoke with the media ahead of OTAs.
According to Lions senior writer Tim Twentyman, Hutchinson said he’s never been more excited in his career to participate in OTAs. The former No. 2 overall pick added that it’s good to be back and his leg is good to go.
If you are a Lions fan, this is the news you wanted to hear from Hutchinson before OTAs. Over the last few months, we’ve seen various videos on social media of the young defender sprinting, which was great progress given the last time we saw Hutchinson on the field.
The Lions coaches will likely take it easy with the now fourth-year defensive end. Since it's only OTAs, they don’t need to see Hutchinson going 100 percent, but you can’t blame him for his excitement.
As previously mentioned, the 24-year-old defensive end was one of the more disruptive players in the league last season before getting injured. Hutchinson produced 19 combined tackles, 17 quarterback hits, 7.5 sacks, and a forced fumble in five games.
In his three years in the NFL, the 6-foot-7, 285-pound pass rusher has tallied 119 quarterback pressures, 65 QB hits, 30 tackles for loss, and 28.5 sacks. Therefore, if Hutchinson stays healthy for the 2025 season, the Lions’ defense will be a force to be reckoned with.