Alim McNeill is entering the 2026 season with fresh legs, and with a full offseason under his belt where he was not nursing a major injury. The Detroit Lions defensive tackle was sorely missed in 2025, especially by their pass rush unit, and generally as a force on their defensive front.
With him back, the Lions' defensive line looks a lot more formidable for this season. McNeill, Tyleik Williams, Levi Onwuzurike, Aidan Hutchinson, and one of DJ Wonnum or the rookie Derrick Moore seem to be one of the better units Detroit's had at their disposal in recent years. Not the best, but much better than what they had in 2025.
McNeill probably isn't feeling a lot of pressure this year, seeing that he's already nailed down an extension with the Lions that has him paid through 2028. But, one minor incentive he could have now is to make this defensive tackle's recent extension look quite silly: Philadelphia Eagles DT Jalen Carter.
Breaking: Eagles are signing two-time Pro-Bowl selection Jalen Carter to a four-year, $152 million extension worth up to $160 million, including $106 million guaranteed that now makes him the highest-paid defensive tackle in NFL history, per his agents Drew and Jason Rosenhaus.… pic.twitter.com/R8VZfbsKTy
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) July 28, 2026
McNeill has opportunity to make Eagles look silly for Carter deal
Carter, a two-time Pro Bowler, is entering his fourth year in the league following an OK 2025 season with the Eagles. He was also a potential piece in trade talks as recently as this offseason, specifically in a deal that could've been made for Las Vegas Raiders edge rusher Maxx Crosby.
Now, he's staying put with Philadelphia through at least 2032 as the highest-paid defensive tackle in NFL history. With just three years of play out of Carter - and two really great seasons from the defender - things could turn sour for Philadelphia and Carter if he can't perform to the now outsized deal he's been pegged to longterm.
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McNeill, on the other hand, is still chugging through his 4-year, $97 million rookie extension reached back in 2024. At the time of that signing, McNeill had shown flashes of being a solid tackle, but not a top-5 or top-5 player at the position. SideLion Report's Brad Berreman also wrote about the potential non-existent return on investment related to this deal ahead of last season:
"There's was never much doubt the Lions were going to give McNeill a fairly lucrative contract extension. But they probably didn't have to make him one of the five highest- paid defensive tackles in the league, and doing so came with the idea the resume he was building would justify that investment."
You could make the same argument for Carter, who saw a slip in production in 2025 and posted just three sacks through 12 games with the Eagles. He also only had 3.5 stuffs, although he impacted the pass in a huge way with seven passes defended.
Still, it's worth hoping that McNeill is able to finally live up to the money that the Lions are doling out to him for the next few seasons. If he can, then this deal begins to look a ton better than what the Eagles just gave out to Carter - especially if he can post similar stuff numbers in addition to more sacks.
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