After letting Al-Quadin Muhammad walk in free agency, the Detroit Lions were forced to address their hole at EDGE2 in two ways: adding back in free agency by signing D.J. Wonnum, and drafting Derrick Moore with their 2nd round pick in this year's draft.
OTAs have just kicked off, and it's way too early to tell which way the wind is blowing as it pertains to either player's advantage over the other to start next to Aidan Hutchinson in 2026.
But, one thing is abundantly clear without seeing any practice or preseason games with either defender: the utilization of both, equally, could prove to be the best solution the Lions have for their long-lingering hole on that side of the defensive line.
Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox named this competition one of the fiercest for the Lions ahead of this season, writing:
"This offseason, Detroit threw multiple darts at its edge rotation. It added D.J. Wonnum and Peyton Turner before using a second-round pick on Michigan's Derrick Moore. Ideally, the Lions will find a starter or combination of players capable of replicating what they had in 2025. Al-Quadin Muhammad recorded 11 sacks but then bolted for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in free agency."
And, he's completely right: the Lions have to hope that the combination of both edge rushers on the line can add up to the 11.5 sack impact that Muhammad had for Detroit.
Lions need to hope two new edge rushers amount to Muhammad's 2025 impact
Detroit got a ton out of Muhammad considering he had only signed on a one-year, team-friendly deal in 2025. 11.5 sacks is nothing to sneer at, although, for the sake of sneering, we'll mention that those sacks came in bunches rather than as a consistent product throughout the 2025 season.
There were games where Muhammad, and Hutchinson, were complete non-factors defensively, while there were others where they completely dominated as a tandem.
Their run defense was even more worse for wear, which is what makes the Wonnum signing a bit more tantalizing - he's a better run defender than pocket crasher, although with a healthy Lions D-line, you could assume he could pressure the pocket more consistently than he ever has in his career.
READ MORE: Penei Sewell's do-it-all persona is paying dividends for Lions
Detroit is looking for far more consistency from their entire defensive line this season, especially with a healthy Alim McNeill back in the fold to, hopefully, start in Week 1. With Moore and Wonnum on the roster, too, they have the ability to swap both in and out either with Hutchinson or with each other, providing some fresh legs and burst along the line.
That could greatly improve the Lions' ability to remain consistent as pocket disruptors. After 2025, it's obvious that that part to their defense was a bit of a weakness despite their collective sack total. There's no downside to the fact that Detroit saw that issue and decided to load up on decent talent that can back Hutchinson up consistently throughout the year.
Add us as a preferred source on Google