The Detroit Lions drafted a player they expect to make a big difference right off the bat during the 2022 season in Aidan Hutchinson, and some early projections have that being the case.
Many have favored Hutchinson to be in the mix to claim the Rookie Defensive Player of the Year honors for next season, and think that the player is primed to elevate what has been a terrible defense in terms of generating a positive pass rush.
The latest Lions news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Lions newsletter here!
Recently, Pro Football Focus took a look at picking out some statistical projections for rookie players and set over-under totals in terms of production. Hutchinson was included, and writer Eric Eager analyzed an over-under total of 8.5 Hutchinson sacks for 2022. As he said, he sees him going over that number fairly substantially.
“I project Hutchinson to record 9.4 sacks if he earns 450 pass-rushing snaps, which makes this over a pretty good bet. Restore the roar,” Eager wrote in the piece.
Many have assumed Hutchinson can get in the neighborhood of 10 sacks this season, which makes this a very good bet for the Lions. As he transitions to the league, few people see Hutchinson struggling to fit in at all and make a difference.
This statistical projection only serves to prove that further in the case of Detroit’s top pass rusher.
Dan Campbell Already Praising Hutchinson’s Work
If Hutchinson roars out of the gate and has a big season, few people will be surprised, even including Dan Campbell. Speaking with the media on Thursday, May 26, the Detroit head coach was asked about his early impressions of Hutchinson so far. As the boss said, the Lions have a player that he thinks can make an instant impact on the field given some of the things he’s already shown that he can do.
“Dan Campbell on Aidan Hutchinson: “His DNA says that he’s going to do everything that he can to be successful. And he’s got enough ability and enough strength .. to go out there and help us and help us win some games,” the coach told the media as shown in Birkett’s tweet.
Hutchinson has been seen as very pro ready for 2022, so the fact that he has shown these traits to the Lions already is notable. The team will want to see him get off to as fast as a start as possible to help them on defense, so this is great news for Detroit on their top pick.
It might be very notable how much Hutchinson is being praised by the team’s staff so early on in his NFL career.
Hutchinson’s College Stats & Highlights
In terms of Hutchinson, several Lions fans will also likely know how likely it is he has a big rookie year given what he was capable of during his career at Michigan, and the defensive end put up some solid numbers in school. Coming into this season, Hutchinson collected 94 tackles, 3.5 sacks and 3 forced fumbles. Here’s some of his work from the past:
This year, his work has been even better. Hutchinson has put together a stellar regular season with 14 sacks, 58 tackles and 2 forced fumbles. He looked like one of the best defenders in college football throughout the second half of the season and has been a problem for whatever teams have lined up against him thus far.
As he transitions to the NFL, Hutchinson could be just as big of a problem for opposing teams. For that reason, it seems fair to think he will be able to make a big statistical impact on the field right away as a rookie player.
READ NEXT: Lions WR1 Emerging Player Identified
First Rookie Prop Bet Revealed for Aidan Hutchinson’s 2022 Stats