Getty Aidan Hutchinson plays for the Lions in 2022.
While the Detroit Lions are 1-3 and good feelings have been hard to come by on defense, there is a bright spot showing for the future in a couple rookies.
Thus far this season, the team has been led by defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson as well as linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez. Each have been sited at various times for their good work, and each have now received a solid honor from NFL.com expert Daniel Jeremiah for their play.
Jeremiah recently provided a look at the top 25 rookies at the first quarter of the 2022 season, and the Lions hat two players crack the list in Hutchinson and Rodriguez.
The second-overall pick, Hutchinson placed sixth on the list of the top rookies so far, and as Jeremiah wrote, while he might not be getting much help, he’s also performing in a big way.
“Hutchinson has brought his trademark tenacity and toughness to the Lions. They don’t have nearly enough talent on defense right now, but he has performed at a very solid level,” he wrote.
In terms of Rodriguez, he placed in the 20 spot, and has impressed due to his ability to be tough up front.
“Rodriguez is very instinctive, and I’ve been impressed with his lateral mobility against the run,” Jeremiah wrote.
Both of these players should be building blocks for the Lions moving forward, and it will be interesting to see where their careers go the rest of this season.
Hutchinson Stepping up Early for Lions
Even as the opposition is paying him attention, it’s clear that Hutchinson has some breakout ability early. Already, he has surged to the top of some NFL leaderboards to start the season.
Hutchinson continues to press the pocket in a big way. In terms of rookie pressures up front, there’s been nobody better than Hutchinson and Kansas City rookie George Karlaftis to this point. Hutchinson has 11 pressures while Karlaftis has 10.
Coming into the year, many wondered if Hutchinson could contend for Rookie of the Year and other top honors. His performance so far shows why that could be the case, providing he can put up some numbers moving forward even as folks target him for double teams up front.
Rodriguez Impressive to Start Career
In terms of what he was able to do on the field, there is no question that Rodriguez was a major stud for the Lions against the Commanders.
Not only did he have the clean play that Pro Football Focus talked about within his solid grade status, but Rodriguez managed to pile up the tackles and impact plays as well.
In Week 2, Rodriguez got yet another major accolade for his play, being named Pro Football Focus’s top rookie defender for the week. The Lions tweeted about the honor on Tuesday, September 20.
Furthering the yeehaw agenda in Week 2 🤠
Rodriguez collected a total of 5 tackles on the afternoon, and was everywhere in terms of run support and pass defense once again. So far in the league, those have been his hallmarks, and he has been noticed for them in a major way.
It’s been a big start for both these rookies, and something that they can hang their hats on in terms of the beginning of their professional careers.