Lions ahead of OTAs: Aidan Hutchinson cleared, Sam LaPorta and DJ Reader focus on team goals

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ALLEN PARK, Mich. — A handful of Detroit Lions players gathered at the team facility on Thursday to speak with local reporters and recap where the team is as offseason workouts unfold.

Insight into the 2024 season was shared, as was the mindset of the team, coming off a disappointing finish. But one thing remains clear — the players the Lions gravitate toward are here because they have the innate ability to see beyond themselves and focus on the bigger picture.

That was evident on Thursday.

Aidan Hutchinson returns

The news of the day was created when a 6-foot-6 blond pass rusher emerged in front of a microphone in Allen Park for the first time in seven months, ready to discuss what life away was like.

There was Aidan Hutchinson, walking normally, sharing the story of the broken leg that ended his 2024 season just five games in and the aftermath that followed. Hutchinson said he had never spent the night at a hospital before his injury — something that changed when he spent several days in Irving, Texas, having surgery to repair a broken tibia and fibula. It was the longest Hutchinson had been without football in his life. He didn’t feel like part of the team when he was away rehabbing, and while he was happy to see the team continue to win, not being able to contribute was difficult.

But Hutchinson is back now. He’s been cleared to return to football activities and has been for some time. He’s participating in Detroit’s offseason workouts and said he’s never been more excited for OTAs than he is now.

“It was a very challenging time for a few months,” Hutchinson said. “You know, you want to be a part of the winning that was going on. As much as I was a part of the team, when you’re not really there, you don’t really feel that you’re a part of it. So when I was able to get back on my feet again, that’s why I was trying to be as involved as I could.”

At the time of his injury, Hutchinson was leading the league in sacks (7.5), pressures (45) and pass-rush win rate (35.4 percent; min. 40 pass-rush snaps). He had elevated his game to another level and was the frontrunner for Defensive Player of the Year. It would’ve marked a true ascension to stardom and perhaps cemented him as arguably the game’s most-feared pass rusher.

Aidan Hutchinson hasn’t played football in seven weeks and still ranks 10th in pressures among edge rushers, per PFF: pic.twitter.com/R8i0bu2gpN

— Colton Pouncy (@colton_pouncy) December 1, 2024

Hutchinson said he’s motivated — not because he was robbed of an elite season — but because he knows what he put on tape. Some might view that level as his ceiling. He doesn’t see it that way.

“I would say there’s motivation, not from it getting taken away, but me putting that on tape,” Hutchinson said. “I had a lot of growth in those first five games to where I feel like you evolved as a player and things were clicking at a high level. … I think a lot of people, you know, believe that that is kind of like my ceiling. But I still believe that, you know, I’m gonna continue to push for those greater heights. I’m 24, I’m still a young dude. I don’t think that’s the peak.”

Hutchinson will get a chance to prove as much when he returns to action in 2025. Right now, he’s participating in offseason workouts, getting back on the field and enjoying his time around the team. His coaches and teammates see signs of a return to form in how he’s moving. Hutchinson believes so, too.

“I know it’s tough mentally and physically,” Lions defensive tackle DJ Reader said. “It’s tough. It’s taxing on you, but knowing just from what I know about him and what I know how he’s built, there’s nothing better than to just get out there and sharpen. …So, I know that he’s feeling pretty good.”

“If you’re off the field, right when you step back on it, you get to do what you love again,” Hutchinson said. “Eventually, I think that naturally fades over time. You try to be as grateful as you can. But I don’t think anybody in the game of football will ever be as grateful when I come back in that first game and I get to play football. I get to do it on the big stage again. That’s what it’s all about. It’s the comeback. I’m back. But it’s just being able to do what I love again on the biggest stage. That’s what sets my heart on fire right there.”

Sam LaPorta’s selfless nature makes him a perfect fit in Detroit

Sam LaPorta broke records as a rookie, with a season for the ages. He was named a second-team All-Pro. He earned Pro Bowl honors. He quickly became a star at his position and another weapon on this Lions’ offense causing headaches for opposing defenses.

But there was, admittedly, a decline in targets for LaPorta in Year 2. It took him a while to get going. LaPorta’s been hearing about it this offseason. And he doesn’t understand why.

“There were a lot of weapons last year, so I kept hearing comments this offseason, ‘Why didn’t you get the ball as much?’” LaPorta said Thursday. “It’s like, ‘Dude, we scored the most points of any team in the NFL in the last five years. Everybody deserves the ball.’”

That right there is why LaPorta is here, and why he figures to be a mainstay in Detroit for years to come. Some players would see a dip in production or targets going elsewhere and take it personally. There are egos abound in this league, and managing them is among the list of responsibilities for a head coach. But it’s nothing Campbell has to worry about with LaPorta.

There were a few contributing factors to LaPorta’s slight dip in production. He battled constant, nagging injuries — seemingly one thing after another until he was finally healthy in December. No longer an unknown, LaPorta faced increased attention from defenses, which opened things up for others in the passing game. The emergence of Jameson Williams helped the Lions become a more explosive offense, sacrificing some intermediate looks that went LaPorta’s way in 2023 for the big-play ability of Williams in 2024. But as LaPorta mentioned, it led to the highest scoring offenses in recent memory, en route to 15 wins.

If anything, LaPorta is happy with his season because he thought he grew as a run-blocker, which speaks to how he’s wired. His goal this year is to see the game through the quarterback’s lens — something new offensive coordinator John Morton has been preaching to players this offseason.

“Looking ahead this year, I think just continuing to polish things off in the run game, the pass game,” LaPorta said, when asked where he can further improve. “Start to see the game from the quarterback’s perspective, what Jared needs exactly, and maybe not just knowing what I’m doing on the field, but what other people are doing as well. Just seeing the big picture.”

LaPorta can be a forgotten man at times. Let this be a reminder of what they have in him.

DJ Reader ready to run it back, with continuity and better depth around him

When the Lions sign free agents, they do it with culture in mind. They have a type in the draft — hard workers with talent to match — and that’s no different from their free agency approach. The addition of DJ Reader two years ago remains a shining example.

Reader, in his first year with the Lions, was a calming voice amid chaos. Each week, it felt like someone who signed off the street days prior was playing next to him. Injuries piled up. Adjustments were needed. But Reader’s even-keeled nature and veteran presence subtly kept the Lions afloat. Frankly, he doesn’t get enough credit for that.

But the Lions believe they’re past those continuity issues. They’re getting guys back from injury. They’ve added depth. And as the offseason unfolds, Reader is starting to see the vision for this defensive line and what it can become.

“You see a lot of familiar faces, you see guys that are familiar with the system, so you’re not really second-guessing if they know it, if they don’t,” Reader said. “You don’t have that kind of nervousness — you know what’s going on. It’s always cool to add new guys. …It’s easier for me. Being somebody like last year, I came in last year, it’s a lot easier for me to go into those guys in that room and ask questions because they’re here. They know the system. They can help me out when I get lined up, and I can play with confidence. I’m not worried about some guy who just got here with me (and) I gotta ask him a question.

“…I think that helps us out a lot. There’s guys who are self-check now. Like, I don’t gotta look back and think about where Jack (Campbell) is gonna be or where such and such is gonna be. Like, I know they’re gonna be there because it’s my second year in the deal and I’ve seen them do it a million times before now.”

Detroit’s defensive line — and defense in general — has been playing together for years now. That sort of roster continuity can help ease the transition for new defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard and the new faces on the defensive coaching staff. And as Reader explained, there won’t be much second-guessing now that this group knows what to expect out of one another. This is why the Lions didn’t cut corners building this thing. They want to set themselves up to win and do it together.

For a player like Reader, still chasing that elusive Super Bowl, it’s all that drives him.

“Nothing else really matters,” Reader said. “I’ve had a really, really good career. I’ve been blessed and fortunate to play for a long time, played good ball, played in the Super Bowl, had a good game — just hadn’t won it. So that’s really all that matters to me. It’s really just winning one, whatever way and whatever part of the team I can be and whatever help I can do to this team to help it win, that’s my main focus.”

(Photo: Kimberly P. Mitchell / USA Today)

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