Lions' next move after brutal Levi Onwuzurike injury is painfully obvious

   

The Detroit Lions sustained their first blow of the season, losing promising defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike for the year due to an ACL injury.

When Detroit re-signed Onwuzurike before the offseason, they figured they were getting one of the rising young linemen in the game back for another season. Onwuzurike was a bright spot as injuries piled up on the Lions' line last year, helping to pressure the quarterback.

Buffalo Bills v Detroit Lions

Now, though, that all goes out the window as Onwuzurike will once again be shelved for a long period, hurting his development. The Lions can't wait to make a response move after this frustration, and they need to target Za'Darius Smith immediately.

Smith hasn't signed anywhere this offseason, likely biding his time to see what would happen in terms of training camp injuries. Right now, the Onwuzurike news represents the worst setback any team has endured. If the Lions waste time and another injury comes up with a contender, they could miss out on a ready-made solution.

Last season, Smith was comfortable in Detroit. He posted 12 tackles and four sacks after coming over at the trade deadline from the Cleveland Browns. More than that, he jelled with the team. This offseason, he has even maintained he'd be open to a return with the franchise.

 

Onwuzurike's injury opens the door for another player up front, and Smith's potential return has been the topic of conversation all offseason. It's time for the Lions to make the signing regardless of their other depth moves.

Dan Campbell must avoid temptation to be satisfied with DL depth

Despite the fact that losing Onwuzurike is a blow to depth, Campbell isn't sure the Lions need to make a corresponding move. In the immediate aftermath of revealing the news, he spent most of his time explaining why he thinks the franchise might not need a move up front.

"The depth (I) feel pretty good (about). You don't like to lose anybody. Certainly losing Levi (Onwuzurike), that hurts, but it helps that we got Tyleik (Williams). Feel good about getting (Josh) Paschal back at some point before the season. I think all in all, we're pretty good. I like what we got in that room. And really, we got an opportunity for a lot of guys. We know we'll get (Alim) McNeill back at some point during the season. We just got to get the best unit that we can to come out of this. Then, we got to weather any storm until we get reinforcements, because reinforcements are coming. At least we know that."

While reinforcements are coming, the Lions shouldn't hesitate to make sure they are covered as they will face a brutal schedule. Relying on a rookie in Williams as well as an inconsistent Paschal and injured McNeill is risky. 2024 showed Detroit that if there's one thing they can truly never have enough of, it's defensive linemen.

This offseason, Brad Holmes was critizised for lack of a big move up front. Adding Smith after the first catastrophe of the offseason would atone well for that, and keep the Lions on pace in spite of a frustrating early setback.