Despite the Detroit Lions’ impressive victory against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 6, not everything was a celebration in Arlington last Sunday. In addition to their triumph, the Lions suffered a significant setback when Aidan Hutchinson, Detroit’s most important pass rusher, shattered his tibia and fibula in the third quarter.
The Lions defensive line, which appeared to be improving early in the season, has continued to take hits. Marcus Davenport also suffered a season-ending injury in Week 3 against the Arizona Cardinals, as did Derrick Barnes, the team’s skilled and versatile linebacker who wore many hats for Detroit’s defence, including the SAM linebacker role, for which the team desperately searched their 90-man roster for depth during training camp and preseason.
In the aftermath of all of these injuries, how will the Lions proceed with their lofty Super Bowl goals for 2024? The first thought is to look across the league for talent that can be acquired through trade. Fans naturally dream large, looking at marquee players from struggling teams as potential remedies to the Lions’ current predicament.
Haason Reddick, a former Philadelphia Eagles pass rusher traded to the New York Jets last offseason, is among the high-value candidates mentioned, along with Maxx Crosby and Trey Hendrickson. Reddick has yet to play—or practice—for the Jets, as the two have been mired in a lengthy and nasty disagreement over a contract extension that the 30-year-old veteran wants to sign before taking the field. He is now firmly on the trading block.
After a difficult start to his NFL career, Reddick emerged as one of the league’s top pass rushers in his fourth season, recording 12.5 sacks. Since his breakout season, Reddick has totaled 50.5 sacks in the last four years, ranking fourth among all players during that time period, according to Stathead.
The issue with Reddick’s fit in Detroit is that he would not fill Hutchinson’s defensive line vacancy; rather, he would replace Barnes as the team’ SAM linebacker.
For starters, Reddick isn’t a great run defender and isn’t the size that Detroit needs to set the edge. At 6-foot-1, 240 pounds, Reddick fits the mould of a pass-rushing linebacker in Detroit, similar to Barnes (6-foot, 240 pounds) and Houston (6-foot-1, 245 pounds). Hutchinson (6-foot-7, 285 pounds), Josh Paschal (6-foot-3, 275 pounds), and Marcus Davenport (6-foot-6, 265 pounds) demonstrate the type of size and length that the Lions value in their edge defenders, who must be able to both crush the pocket when pass rushing and hold the edge in run defence.
Throughout his career, Reddick’s run defence has been… existent. Despite being given the opportunity, it is not his strong suit. According to Pro Football Focus, in 2023, Reddick was t-110th among 120 qualifying edge defenders in run stop rate (3.5%), with only nine stops across 262 run defence snaps. In 2022, he ranked 100th among 128 qualifying edge defenders in terms of run stop rate (4.3%). The year before, he finished barely outside the top-50 (t-56th) with a run stop rate of 6.4%.
Rushing the quarterback is his calling card, but when it comes to his fit as the team’s replacement for SAM, wasn’t Houston’s failure to set the edge in run defence or drop back in coverage what made him simply another person in the room? Reddick has played 48, 66, and 73 coverage snaps over the last three years, including a 29.2 coverage grade on 347 snaps in 2019 and ranking 165th out of 168 qualifying players.
The other obvious concern is the contract Reddick hopes to sign before returning to action. This year, Detroit has taken care of its own by finalizing contract extensions with Jared Goff, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown, and, most recently, David Montgomery. Talks between the Lions and Alim McNeill have also allegedly begun, so while Detroit has opened the chequebook to reward and lock down their offensive pillars, the organization has yet to make a significant financial commitment to anyone on defence. Would the first player Detroit targets on that side of the ball be someone who hasn’t played a single down for the team? The same player who would need to get into football shape and go through a ramp-up period before facing Aaron Glenn’s defence?
Speaking of cost, it’s unclear what trade capital the Jets will seek in return. They invested a conditional third-round pick on Reddick and have yet to see anything in return on the field. So it stands to reason that they’ll be searching someplace in that ballpark. To make matters worse for the Lions, the terms of the transaction state that if the Jets move him to an NFC team, New York must give up a second-round selection in exchange. So, either the Jets will avoid dealing with a franchise like the Lions, or Detroit will pay a little more.
It isn’t a problem of quality with Reddick, but of fit—both tactically and financially—that has left the Lions with more questions than answers in the aftermath of Hutchinson’s injury.
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