Through four games of his third NFL season, Detroit Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson has taken his game to another level (6.5 sacks, etc.). He's a legit early Defensive Player of the Year candidate, if not the top candidate right now, and there are no signs of that changing.
Apart from the sack production he has had over his two-plus seasons, Hutchinson has shown some unique athleticism at times. He intercepted three passes during his rookie season, including this one during his NFC Defensive Player of the Week performance against the New York Giants in Week 11.
Hutchinson registered the fourth interception of his career, with seven pass breakups, last season.
Hutchinson rarely comes off the field for the Lions' defense, playing at or near the most snaps of among defensive lineman in the league. But head coach Dan Campbell likes to profess, about players closer to the fringe of the roster than Hutchinson is (in that many words or not), "the more you can do."
Aidan Hutchinson wants a chance to play offense
Hutchinson spoke to Claudette Montana of Sports Illustrated after the Lions' Week 4 win over the Seattle Seahawks. After talking about the team's start, and Jared Goff's performance against Seattle, Montana asked him about any desire he may have to get some reps on offense.
The concept is not a fresh one, at least in terms of Hutchinson telling Lions' coaches he wants to play offense.
"Trust me, I have already done this. They almost got me in it last year. And then they didn't. I never really heard back," Hutchinson said. "This year, I am going to have to talk to our offensive coordinator again and see if we can just -- if we are winning a game by a lot, just sneak me in there and I'll report eligible. Throw me a little fade and we'll take it from there."
Check out Hutchinson's entire conversation with Montana below.
Hutchinson clearly wants to play the other side of the ball, and he can definitely catch the ball if called upon. The only issue is if he comes on the field to play offense, the opposing defense will know something is up. But that won't stop him from bringing it up to offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, or stop it from happening in a game if the situation presents itself.
