The Detroit Lions have been looking to find the right edge rushers to complement Aidan Hutchinson since he has been drafted. One name that is starting to emerge as a potential starter is Tyler Lacy. The former fourth-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars has found a home in Detroit, and head coach Dan Campbell sees him as a great fit for their defense now that he is in the second year of the system.
“He’s like the perfect big end in base,” said Campbell when describing his physique. “That’s the way you want them to look, the way you want them to play.”
Campbell noted that he is checking boxes, but still needs to flash more as a pass rusher before he can become a true relied-on starter.
“The next step for him is some of this stuff, okay, we transition to nickel, slide ot the three-technique, can you get an edge on some of that rush stuff,” Campbell said on the next step. “As far as taking on the run, setting edges, plays hard, practices hard, he is what you are looking for.”
The team appears to have a role carved out for Lacy, and he is hitting their checkmarks.
Detroit Lions Have a Potential Starter in Edge Rusher Tyler Lacy
GettyTyler Lacy #78 of the Detroit Lions
Lacy fell to the fourth round because he was a bit of a tweener in size. The Jaguars did not quite know how to use him. He played most of his snaps along the interior. The team cut him after two seasons, and he caught on with the Lions.
Lacy played just 237 snaps in his first year with the Lions, but played 139 snaps outside the tackle. He entered the year with seven snaps outside the tackle in two seasons with the Jaguars.
The team has a clear role for him, and his tweener size is what they need on the edge. Hutchinson is fast and agile, but he is a bit undersized with shorter arms. So, the team needs a long, heavy body opposite of him.
Lacy can play on the edge for the early downs, but slide inside on nickel snaps. They would replace Tyleik Williams with Lacy to add speed to the interior rush. Then, the team can have one of Derrek Moore or DJ Wonnum come into the edge rusher role to bring more speed.
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Lacy played less than 250 snaps while both Wonnum and Moore were not on the team last season. That alone should tell you how much different the edge group is going to look in 2026. The Lions also have Payton Turner, who has not been healthy enough to practice. Beyond that, Ahmed Hassanein has impressed after missing his rookie season due to injury.
They also have Levi Onwurzurike, who will mostly take three-technique snaps, but could fill the big end role on obvious run downs. They have a lot more size than they had in previous seasons. It will be interesting to see how it works.
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