With Alim McNeill's status for the start of next season an automatic question, the Lions could make a notable move for insurance.
By the sheer timing of his torn ACL (mid-December), it's possible Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alim McNeill isn't ready for the start of next season. The day after the team's season-ending loss, McNeill acknowledged the natural uncertainty of his timeline at such an early point.
"As far as time wise, I have no clue," McNeill said. "I'm just taking it day by day right now. I'm just going through the process right now."
Recovery from an ACL tear generally has a 9-12 recovery timetable. It's not clear if McNeill suffered any other damage to his knee that may throng any wrenches into his recovery, but that timeframe covers most of next season.
The uncertainly around McNeill's health would have many Lions fans saying they should just re-sign defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike and be done with it. But the decision to re-sign Onwuzurike is not that cut-and-dry, and the market for his services may exceed where the Lions are willing to go with money and years.
Lions predicted to prioritize Alim McNeill insurance in free agency
The Lions are in good shape cap space-wise again heading into the offseason. Some kind of insurance against a prolonged recovery for McNeill is probably on the radar anyway. In predicting the landing spot for the top upcoming free agent at each position, Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report matched the Lions with defensive tackle B.J. Hill.
"The prediction here is Hill finds a new home with the Detroit Lions. They battled numerous defensive injuries in 2024 and lost star defensive tackle Alim McNeill to a torn ACL in Week 15. Adding Hill would provide insurance during his recovery, and the Lions could use additional depth along their defensive front anyway. Hill is unlikely to be a true bargain, even at his age, but Detroit is projected to have $58 million in available 2025 cap space."
Hill will turn 30 in April, so he's on the older side. He missed two games this season, but he was still quite good (three sacks, 56 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 34 quarterback pressures-PFF, tied for the 23rd-best overall grade among qualified defensive tackles from Pro Football Focus). Spotrac projects him for a two-year, $18 million deal in free agency.
The interesting tentacle to the Lions possibly signing Hill would be a reunion with DJ Reader on the interior of Detroit's defensive line. Before Reader of course signed with the Lions last offseason, he and Hill were together in Cincinnati for three seasons (2021-2023) and formed one of the better defensive tackle duos in the league.
As the Lions shape a plan for their defensive front this offseason, taking into account McNeill's recovery, it would make a lot of sense for Hill to be somewhere on the radar.
