The Detroit Lions fell well short of their Super Bowl aspirations in 2025 by not even making the playoffs and, in turn, saw their Super Bowl window start to close.
The Lions need to go all in while that window is still open, and one way they can do that is by making a big splash along the edge.
Detroit has a need at the position currently, as last year’s starter opposite Aidan Hutchinson, Al-Quadin Muhammad, is a pending free agent.
It’s possible the Lions just decide to bring Muhammad back, but he’s not going to be the bargain he was last year and it remains to be seen if he can replicate the kind of success he had during a season in which he posted a career-high 11 sacks.
What we would like to see the Lions do is sign Cincinnati Bengals edge rusher Trey Hendrickson in free agency. SportsGrid’s Paul Connor predicts that’s exactly what Detroit will do.
“The Lions’ Super Bowl window is shrinking, and Detroit needs another edge presence opposite Aidan Hutchinson,” Connor said “Hendrickson’s high motor fits Dan Campbell’s culture perfectly.”
The expectation is that Hendrickson doesn’t want anything to do with Cincinnati after the team refused to pay him the contract he deserves in recent years.
The Bengals do have the option of utilizing the franchise tag and then trading Hendrickson, but it remains to be seen if they’ll take that approach.
Hendrickson would be the perfect all-in move for the Lions and we would have no issue with Detroit trading for him if that’s what it takes.
He and Hutchinson would give Detroit the best one-two punch along the edge in the NFL, and that would take the Lions’ defense to another level and greatly aid in the team’s quest to win a Super Bowl.
Spotrac projects Hendrickson will land a two-year, $50 million deal in free agency. For a guy who led the NFL in sacks from 2023-24, that would be a bargain.
The problem with this prediction is general manager Brad Holmes has been hesitant to make any big, expensive moves in recent years with all the homegrown players the team has and will need to extend.
However, after the disappointing finish to the 2025 campaign, we could see Holmes changing his tune and throwing caution to the wind in order to better position his team to make a run in 2026.
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