The Detroit Lions have had a solid draft class from 2021, and most of their players have been impressive quickly in their careers, boosting the hopes of the team for the future.
While everyone has played a solid role for the team, there is no question some players have done more than a few others early on to help fast-track their development. One such player who could be lagging a bit behind but primed for a better future is defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike.
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Recently, Bleacher Report and writer Kristopher Knox took a look at some struggling rookies who can turn around their play for the 2022 season and break out. Onwuzurike cracked the list for the potential he offers a Detroit defense who has struggled in a major way so far in 2021.
As Knox wrote, the Lions defense needs more talent most of all, and as they get it, Onwuzurike could be in the position to show more of his skills to the team in order to help out the franchise. As Knox predicts, Onwuzurike will be on the field more in 2022 and be able to be more of a disruptive force for the team.
It isn’t that Onwuzurike has been bad, it’s simply that he could need a bit more time to develop after having a slow start to training camp and the preseason due to injury concerns and getting back to speed. Already late in 2021, the Lions are seeing signs that a turnaround come be on the way.
Onwuzurike Coming on Strong Late Season for Lions
Though he has gotten off to a slow start as a whole this season, there are signs the defensive lineman is turning sa corner as the year wears on. Since Week 11, Onwuzurike has piled up 9 total tackles, 2 tackles for-loss, 1 sack and 1 passes defended. Perhaps his best play recently was a sack on Thanksgiving Day against Chicago. The play came at a key moment in the fourth quarter with Detroit trying to halt Chicago’s momentum on defense. On second down, Onwuzurike broke through the line and managed to reel in Andy Dalton on the play. Here’s a look:
Though the Lions didn’t end up winning the game, Onwuzurike’s sack was a big highlight of the day. From the start of training camp which saw the rookie sidelined for injury recovery to now, it’s been an up and down season. Seeing hard work get paid off at this point late in the year is huge for the Lions and for Onwuzurike’s future and could help his confidence in a big way.
Onwuzurike Stats & Highlights
The Lions needed some major help in the trenches and Onwurzurike can theoretically provide it for now and in the future. He collected 95 tackles in his time in college to go with 16 tackles for-loss and 7 sacks. Onwurzurike opted out of the 2020 season, but he showed well in 2019 when he last played. Teams looking to draft Onwuzurike were likely looking at his ability to be physical and tough in the trenches and develop into a great player in the middle.
In Detroit, Onwuzurike has started to show some signs of coming into his own on the field. Thus far this season, he has collected 9 total tackles and showed some of the burst he did in college:
In time, the Lions hope that Onwuzurike can continue to develop. That’s just what some are predicting for the future, including those at Bleacher Report.
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Lions’ ‘Struggling Rookie’ Identified as 2022 Breakout Candidate