The Detroit Lions must revamp their defense for 2025, but a Pro Football Focus analyst suggests that retaining an internal free agent should be their top priority. However, it’s not an easy choice.<\/p>\n
In 2024, the Lions’ defense endured a series of untimely injuries, and the lack of depth contributed significantly to the team’s failure to meet expectations in the playoffs.<\/p>\n
This offseason, improving the defense will be a key focus. Re-signing some of their own free agents will likely be part of the plan.<\/p>\n
One of those players is defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike.<\/p>\n
After finally staying healthy this season (16 games), his stats may not stand out (28 total tackles, 1.5 sacks), but he tallied 45 quarterback pressures during the regular season and had a top-25 PFF grade among defensive tackles.<\/p>\n
With Alim McNeill’s torn ACL casting doubt on his availability for next season, it\u2019s no surprise that Dalton Wasserman of PFF named Onwuzurike as the one free agent the Lions can\u2019t afford to lose.<\/p>\n
Re-signing Onwuzurike seems like a logical move for the Lions to maintain depth on the defensive line after the injury setbacks this year. But the decision won\u2019t be easy.<\/p>\n
Onwuzurike dealt with back issues during his first three seasons, and a major surgery caused him to miss all of 2022, putting his career at risk. However, without injury rehab last offseason, he was able to gain weight and carry strong performances into the season.<\/p>\n
This makes Onwuzurike a dilemma for the Lions. They\u2019ve likely been encouraged by his growth this year, driven by improved health.<\/p>\n
However, back problems don\u2019t simply disappear, and his history with them is a concern. Was this his peak, or can he keep progressing?<\/p>\n
The Lions have a history of rewarding their own players, so they may not hesitate to offer Onwuzurike a lucrative multi-year deal.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s a more difficult decision than many might assume, and if Onwuzurike receives a better offer elsewhere, he should definitely consider taking it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Detroit Lions must revamp their defense for 2025, but a Pro Football Focus analyst suggests that retaining an internal free agent should be their top priority. However, it’s not an easy choice. In 2024, the Lions’ defense endured a series of untimely injuries, and the lack of depth contributed significantly to the team’s failure […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22552,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[378],"tags":[2560,2202],"class_list":["post-22551","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-detroit-lions","tag-alim-mcneills","tag-levi-onwuzurike"],"yoast_head":"\n