Have you guys heard about all the injuries the Detroit Lions have? I’m sure you have because it’s all anyone wants to talk about right now and understandably so, this team was well on its way to greatness before all this happened. The good news is that greatness is still possible. The Lions just have to work around some things.
In the coming weeks, the Lions could see some returns from IR and they’ll have some players move around and they’ll bend this defense in a way that will help them win. We took a look at the Lions’ defense in its current form and looked at who could be back ahead of the playoffs and here’s what we believe the depth chart looks like going into that first playoff game.
| Position | Player | Backup | Backup |
|---|---|---|---|
| LE | Josh Paschal | Trevor Nowaske | Jonah Williams |
| NT | DJ Reader | Patrick O’Connor | Brodric Martin |
| DT | Levi Onwuzurkie | Myles Adams | |
| RE | Za’Darius Smith | Al-Quadin Muhammad | |
| WLB | Alex Anzalone | Jalen Reeves-Maybin | Ezekiel Turner |
| MLB | Jack Campbell | Ben Niemann | Kwon Alexander |
| LCB | Amik Robertson | Kindle Vildor | |
| SS | Ifeatu Melifonwu | Jamal Adams | |
| FS | Kerby Joseph | Brandon Joseph | |
| RCB | Terrion Arnold | Ennis Rakestraw | |
| NB | Brian Branch | Emmanuel Moseley | |
Ok, at first glance, this is actually not nearly as bad as some would make it seem. Yes, the Lions are missing some key players like Aidan Hutchinson and Alim Mcneil, but they still have some great players going in the playoffs with them.
Let’s look at some of the changes made here. First, the Lions will move Branch back to the nickel with Melifonwu coming back. That will allow Robertson to move to the outside and take over for Carlton Davis. This should keep that secondary moving along as well as they have been moving.
Anzalone and Reeves-Maybin are back to really strengthen the Lions linebacker corps as well. Then you get Onwuzurkie taking over for McNeill. That’s a good spot for him and we know that he can get pressure from there.
This is a solid group to go into the playoffs with. Couple that with the Lions’ number one offense and this team can definitely still go win the big one.
