The Lions' linebacker room is very tough to evaluate coming off last season.
This group is so tough to evaluate because of the plethora of injuries they faced throughout the season. Derrick Barnes was the first Lion to miss time after tearing his MCL and PCL in Week 3 and missing the rest of the season.
Alex Anzalone missed plenty of time as well, breaking his arm in Week 11, but returned at the end of the season for the Lions' short playoff push. Finally, depth LB Malcolm Rodriguez tore his ACL on Thanksgiving and missed the rest of the season.
That leaves just one guy, Jack Campbell, a second-year linebacker out of Iowa. Campbell was picked in the first round by the Lions in 2023 and had his breakout year in 2024 as the only Week 1 starter to play the whole season in the linebacker room.
Campbell lands in the top 10, while other Lions linebacker misses the list
Linebacker is a very tough position to play as a rookie in the NFL, and Campbell felt that, having a poor rookie season for Detroit. Although you expect a guy like Campbell to bounce back and improve in his second season, the jump he made while being the only healthy starter for Detroit was insane.
Mason Cameron of PFF ranked the top 32 linebackers in the NFL on Tuesday, and Jack Campbell landed at No. 8 on the list. Cameron did this list in tiers as well, and had Campbell in the third tier, joined by Bobby Okereke, Devin Lloyd, Edgerrin Cooper, T.J. Edwards, and Quincy Williams.
"Campbell took a massive step forward in his second season as a pro, with his 78.7 PFF overall grade ranking fourth in the NFL among linebackers with at least 600 snaps," said Cameron. "Another step forward in 2025 will put him in the top-five conversation."
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Of course, this is extremely high praise for a linebacker who has just two seasons under his belt. Campbell finds himself as the youngest linebacker in the top eight of this ranking. Despite a lackluster rookie season, Campbell was a solid run defender, but in 2024, he put it all together.
"While he’s always been a plus run defender, it was his massive leap in coverage that earned him his placement on this list," Cameron explained. "The 2023 first-rounder's 74.2 PFF coverage grade placed him in the top six — a nearly 40-point jump on the grading scale over his 35.3 mark as a rookie."
While it is no surprise that Campbell found his way onto this list after last season, it is shocking not to see Alex Anzalone's name anywhere on this list. Although he missed a lot of time last season, he has been the heart of this Lions defense for years and is easily a top 32 linebacker in the NFL.
According to Jeremy Reisman of Pride of Detroit, the Lions had the second-best defensive DVOA in football during Weeks 1-11 when Anzalone was healthy, and dropped to second-to-last in defensive DVOA in Weeks 12-17 when Anzalone was out.
Well let me tell you:
— Jeremy Reisman (@DetroitOnLion) January 7, 2025
LIONS DEFENSE DVOA
Weeks 1-11 (w/Anzalone) -219.2% (2nd in NFL)
Weeks 12-17 (no Anzalone:
- +96.5% (31st)
Week 18
- -48.6% (2nd) https://t.co/6CJqk9MRs5
While his overall PFF grade may not be fantastic, Anzalone has a 73.7 coverage grade, good for 17th/189 linebackers in football. His time off and his run defense grade may have kept him off this list, but looking at how important he is to the Lions' defense alone should get him on this list.
Regardless, I believe a full season of Campbell and Anzalone is going to prove to be otherworldly for the Lions. This is the best defensive roster the Lions have had in the Dan Campbell era, and the only thing that can stop them is injuries, yet again.