Would Jabaal Sheard solve the Lions pass rushing woes?

Could the signing of defensive lineman Jabaal Sheard help the Detroit Lions increase the pressure on opposing quarterbacks?

To say the Detroit Lions have had an unpleasant start to the 2020 season would be an understatement. The defense hasn’t been able to hold back to back double-digit leads. While injuries have played their part, the defensive line hasn’t helped the secondary very much either.

In two games, the Lions have managed only two quarterback sacks. While the defensive linemen have been able to hit the quarterback a total of eight times, it hasn’t made them uncomfortable enough to throw them off their game. The two-game total is 488 yards passing allowed.

While looking for solutions the help the pass rush, the Detroit Lions have brought in another former New England Patriots player, most recently with the Indianapolis Colts, defensive lineman Jabaal Sheard. It really shouldn’t be a surprise that Lions general manager Bob Quinn and head coach Matt Patricia would turn to yet another familiar face as a potential addition to the squad.

At this point, the Lions front office would almost be rebuilding the Patriots defensive line in Detroit with three former Pats moving to the Motor City. Defensive end Trey Flowers played with Sheard in New England during the 2015 and 2016 seasons. The two combined for 12 sacks in 2016 while playing alongside one another.

While Lions defensive lineman Danny Shelton never played with Flowers and Sheard, he is another former Patriots player on the defensive line in Detroit. The hope would be this combination makes some magic happen for the Honolulu Blue. Could they team up and provide 2016 numbers?

What does Jabaal Sheard bring to the table?

For starters, Sheard was part of a championship team and would bring that experience to Detroit. He could mentor the younger players on the line and hopefully entice more production out of other players. He would also bring a total of 51.5 career sacks and 92 career quarterback hits.

To put it plainly, Sheard pressures the opposing quarterback. Exactly what this Detroit Lions team could use right now. From 2016 through 2019, he averaged five sacks per and 11 quarterback hits per season. Adding him to the rotation, at the right price, would easily be an improvement to the team.

If the Lions can get their defense going by providing more pressure on opposing quarterbacks, it would improve their chances of holding a lead. We’ll just have to wait and see if Quinn pulls the trigger and adds another former Patriots player to Patricia’s defense.