On Monday afternoon, Lions head coach Dan Campbell was asked if he felt there was anything imminent on the trade front in the next 24 hours. The Lions have been oft-discussed as a buyer at the trade deadline — a little more than a week out at the time the question was asked.
His answer put Lions fans on the edge of their seats.
“It could be, yeah” Campbell said, smirking, then jumping in place before reiterating. “It could be.”
Campbell’s comments and ensuing antics — intended as playful more than anything — drew plenty of buzz on social media. The Lions are one of the best teams in the NFL, currently in the pole position of the NFC North and NFC. They have a clear need for a pass rusher after homegrown star Aidan Hutchinson fractured his tibia and fibula and will miss the rest of the regular season, with a shot at a Super Bowl return. But for that to happen, the Lions have to make it there, which is why a deadline deal would make a ton of sense in a market that could have several options available.
The Lions could certainly use the help.
Since Hutchinson went down, Lions edge rushers have amassed 17 pressures in two games. In his last full game prior to injury, Hutchinson recorded 15 pressures by himself. Despite missing the last two games, he still ranks second in pressures (45) and third in sacks (7.5). It goes to show how much of a one-man wrecking crew Hutchinson was, and how the Lions need more as they look to replace him.
“Hutch was a guy that can generate pressure in games or by himself, but obviously, Hutch is not here,” Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said last week. “Now you look at each player that we have, and you try to do the same thing with each of those players. So, my job is to make sure I put a gameplan together looking at the players and making sure it’s player-centric to where every time that they go out there and play, we’re putting them in the best position. …And listen, I know that Hutch brought a huge part of rushing the passer, but man, again, we have other guys that can go out there and do the same thing. So, listen, are they Hutch? No, they’re not, and it’s hard to be Hutch. But they have their own talents and traits that we can try to utilize to help us win.”
Last week, we got our first look at some of the newly added pieces along Detroit’s defensive line. Alquadin Muhammad was impressive vs. the Titans, recording six pressures and a win rate of 24.1 percent in his Lions debut. Isaiah Thomas, signed off the Cleveland Browns practice squad, recorded one pressure in 16 pass rush snaps, with a win rate of 14.3 percent. Defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike kicked out to defensive end against the Titans and came through with five pressures.
The Lions have also upped their blitz rate in the last two weeks, getting their linebackers involved. From Weeks 1-6, the Lions ranked 13th in blitz rate at 30.1 percent, per TruMedia. Over the last two weeks, they lead the league at 44.9 percent. Four of their five sacks in that span have come from linebackers, with the fifth via an unblocked Josh Paschal.
They’re piecing things together and making do with what they have. But that begs the question: Do the Lions have enough to make it through the rest of the season?
There are 10 games remaining in the regular season. The Lions lost John Cominsky in training camp, and are without their two starting edge rushers — Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport (elbow) for the season. What happens if there’s another long-term injury? What happens when they face better offensive lines than Tennessee’s? Do they have enough to generate pressure without selling out with the blitz? All questions we don’t have answers to.
Campbell is on record saying the Lions “need just a little bit more” from their edge rushers. And while they haven’t made a move yet, that’s not to say they aren’t looking. This is simply how they do business.
“Brad knows the ins and outs of what it would take to acquire somebody. I don’t know all of those, but I know enough to know that if it’s somebody who is highly productive, they’re 6’6, 285 pounds, run a 4.4 and 35-inch arms, those guys don’t just fall off trees,” Campbell said. “You’re going to have to — do you want to trade Hutch for that guy? Some of it is — it’s certainly trade value, it’s also a contract. What does that contract (look like) — how does that have a bearing on our future and who we’re trying to get signed moving forward? …We’re open to anything, Brad’s working through it. We are not going to be in a hurry. Brad would tell you he’s doing his homework, the crew’s doing their homework, they’re looking at everything.
“But we’re not going to just make a move to make it, it’s got to be right. It’s got to be the right guy and the pieces have to fall in place.”
That, in a nutshell, is where Holmes and Campbell have always stood. Campbell’s comments on the subject have proven consistent with the team’s philosophy regarding deadline deals in their time as contenders. They don’t force things. They’ll look for the right combination of culture and price tag, in an effort to keep their window open as long as possible.
That said, the Lions are further along this year than they were in 2023. Last year, the Lions were careful about the language they used when discussing expectations for the season. The message was about winning the division for the first time in 30 years, securing a home playoff game and seeing what happens from there. This year, language from the top on down has been about the Super Bowl. The team believes it can get there after coming close last year. Holmes has said it. Campbell’s said it. Players have said it.
In a year where the Lions could be buyers, the market could favor them if the stars align.
First things first: don’t expect Maxx Crosby or Myles Garrett to become available. Mark Davis is on record, multiple times, saying the Raiders will not trade Crosby. Garrett, too, would be a surprise. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini spoke to sources from both teams who’ve said Crosby and Garrett are simply too valuable to sell. Based on early deadline buzz, it sounds like those two will remain in place. It’s also not a guarantee the Lions would want to part ways with the draft capital it’d take to acquire one of them.
As unlikely as it is, considering the Bengals’ history, could a guy like Trey Hendrickson be available? He’d be an excellent fit for the Lions, as he’s currently tied for fifth in sacks with 7.0 and tied for fifth in pressures with 37. He also played for Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn before in New Orleans. Hendrickson requested a trade back in April, only to suit up and play this season, and has a contract that runs through the 2025 season.
The big caveat here is the Bengals rarely make midseason trades. Their last two: 2020, sending a disgruntled Carlos Dunlap to Seattle for BJ Finley and a seventh-round pick, and 2011, shipping quarterback Carson Palmer to the then-Oakland Raiders. So, yeah. Not typically how they do business. It also doesn’t seem like the Bengals have given up hope of a playoff push. Best case scenario if you’re a Lions fan who wants Hendrickson: root for the Bengals to lose to the Raiders on Sunday and pray they change their philosophy ahead of the deadline.
Cleveland’s Za’Darius Smith could be one of the top targets for Detroit. On paper, he’s a strong fit. He’s got five sacks (tied for 14th in the NFL), 24 pressures (t-26th, per PFF), a win rate of 18.6 percent (14th – min. 50 pass-rush snaps), can defend the run and could be brought back as a fit opposite of Hutchinson in 2025. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that Smith is a hot name, and could be had for a “really good Day 3 pick” for Smith. Would Detroit’s fourth-rounder in 2025 be enough to get a deal done?
Giants pass rusher Azeez Ojulari has come on strong in the absence of Kayvon Thibodeaux. He’s got six sacks and 19 pressures this season (with five of those sacks and 13 of those pressures in the last three weeks alone). He’s in the final year of his rookie deal, and considering Thibodeaux is expected back in November and Brian Burns is a mainstay on that defensive line, it could be an opportune time for a 2-6 Giants team to capitalize on his trade value while it’s high.
It remains to be seen which route the Lions go ahead of the Nov. 5 trade deadline. Detroit’s inactivity to date doesn’t mean they’re sitting things out. But if they do, it would signal that the right move wasn’t out there.
Amid an all-important season, and the most fascinating trade deadline of the Holmes-Campbell era yet, we’ll see how the Lions move forward.
(Top photo of Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes: Kimberly P. Mitchell / USA Today)
