Aidan Hutchinson is on the comeback trail following a serious injury suffered during the 2024 campaign, and Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard is convinced he’s back.
While there was recently some concern about Hutchinson’s recovery thanks to a video posted on social media, Sheppard doesn’t seem at all concerned about the star edge rusher while watching him during voluntary workouts.
“I said, ‘Hutch, you know how I know you back?’ He’s like, ‘How?'” Sheppard said, per Lions Wire. “‘Because you’re touching that ground when you run that hoop.’ That’s that little thing he does like he’s some supernatural cat, which he is.”
Sheppard also praised Hutchinson for his resiliency in coming back from the broken tibia and fibula he suffered in Week 6 last season.
“There’s not a more resilient, mentally tough guy that that type of injury during that type of season that he was on course of having could have happened to,” Sheppard said. “He’s the most energetic guy on the field.”
The Lions badly need Hutchinson to return to form, especially after the team’s lack of significant action along the edge this offseason.
After Detroit cut Za’Darius Smith because the team couldn’t afford him, according to general manager Brad Holmes, the Lions haven’t made an adequate move to replace him.
The Lions did take an edge rusher in the 2026 NFL draft, but that came in the sixth round in Boise State’s Ahmed Hassanein. While Sheppard is high on the rookie, it’s too much to expect him to make the kind of impact the Lions need.
“Absolute joy to be around. He’s never had a bad day, and he doesn’t know what ‘slow down’ means,” Sheppard said of Hassanein.
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