Injuries have decimated the defensive end position for the Detroit Lions. Will this glaring weakness derail their season before it even starts?
A look at the Detroit Lions roster on NFL.com will quickly show a glaring weakness. I’ve already wrote about the Lions roster weakness at defensive end, but the events of the past week have made things go from bad to down right dire.
As of Friday, the roster lists eight defensive ends. Of those eight, three have five years of experience each. One, Kerry Hyder, whose season ended with a freak non-contact Achilles tendon rupture, has just two years of experience. The rest, combined? Zero. That’s right, four of the players that the Lions will depend on to provide pass rush this year have never played in a real-life NFL game.
In case you don’t know how to sink a season, there are two sure-fire ways to do it. The first I shall not even address, because the prospects are too frightening. Let’s just say back-up quarterback Jake Rudock, and leave it at that. The second way is to not have a pass rush. That’s what Lions fans are facing right now.
The only saving grace for our squad could be the re-appearance of star defensive end Ezekiel Ansah. At half strength last year, Ansah was mediocre at best. At full strength, the former BYU star can game-wreck any team with his explosiveness off the edge.
However, Ansah’s currently on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list presumably due to an ankle injury he struggled with last season. The move was believed to be precautionary at the time. Will Ansah play this preseason? This year? Will he play at full strength at all? No one really knows.
The chances of the Lions bringing in a highly effective defensive end at this point in the season are slim. Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin might be the most valuable non-player in Detroit, but at some point, scheming for pressure leaves parts of the defense exposed. While Austin has shown genius-level game planning in the past, there will come a time when an opposing team will figure him out.
Next: Detroit Lions preseason - Why the New York Jets are a good test
Last weekend, in their first preseason game, the Detroit Lions harassed the Indianapolis Colts for five sacks without Ziggy Ansah or Kerry Hyder. Facing the New York Jets this week, with a much better offensive line, the Lions must find a way to generate pressure, or the entire season could be at jeopardy.