The Detroit Lions had a stacked roster entering the season, but even the best teams can be improved. In this case, there were some doubts about their ability to get to the quarterback.
Of course, Aidan Hutchinson was on pace to lead the league in sacks last season, and he looked poised for a Defensive Player of the Year campaign before his season-ending injury. Still, the Lions were a little thin at defensive end after him.
And with $11 million available in cap space and Za'Darius Smith still unsigned until this week, it seemed like he was a natural fit and a logical pickup. The team, however, didn't feel like they needed to address that position.
The Lions' Shaky Pass-Rush Comes Back to Haunt Them in Week 1
All things considered, it wasn't much of a surprise to see the Lions struggle to get to Jordan Love in the season opener. As pointed out by Nolan Bianchi, they had four pressures against the Packers' ten midway through the third quarter of the game. They didn't get a single sack all game.
Jordan Love had all day to move around in the pocket, and the Packers quarterback kept finding the open man all day long. He finished the game with 188 passing yards and two touchdowns, and while those numbers might not seem flashy, he was never put under any type of pressure, and the Packers just had to run out the clock for most of the second half.
Of course, Smith is no spring chicken, and at 32 years old, he may have lost a step. Still, he had 12 tackles, 4.0 sacks, and 40 pressures in his eight games with the Lions last season, and it looked like he still had something left in the tank.
He looked sharp enough to make the Philadelphia Eagles give him a contract after the season opener, and the defending Super Bowl champions don't take things lightly when it comes to landing high-end reinforcements and bolstering their defense.
Of course, it's just one game, and the Lions are still getting used to life without Aaron Glenn on defense. But even if they're much better than they looked in the season opener, they still have a shortage of options at the position. Aidan Hutchinson is a superstar, but he can only do so much on his own.
Now, they don't have that many proven options in free agency at this point in the season, with veterans like Preston Smith, DeMarcus Walker, or Shaquil Barrett as the best options. If this worrisome trend continues, they'll have to pull the trigger on a trade before it's too late.