The Detroit Lions have a defensive line injury problem, and everyone is worried about it. Levi Onwuzurike is out for the year, Josh Paschal won't be ready till September, and Mekhi Wingo won't be ready till September either. Then there's Alim McNeill.
McNeill tore his ACL back in December, and that usually takes quite a while to heal up from right? The timetable that's been floated out by the Lions since the league meetings in April is that McNeill won't be back until November.
Lions GM Brad Holmes dropped a bombshell in an interview with the NFL Network on Sirius XM when he said that McNeill could actually be back earlier than that.
“... still having Alim on his way back, which I think that, you know, that has a potential to be a little bit earlier than expected,” Holmes said. “Because he’s doing great right now. We feel very confident about that.”
Well, that's a game changer for sure. Now, this does not mean McNeill is coming back next week. That's not happening. He's not likely to be back ahead of the season, or maybe not the first month of the season.
But if the Lions can get McNeill back in October instead of November, that' a huge change. The Lions have a really hard month. They have the Bengals and Chiefs on the road and then the Bucs at home. That's three playoff teams right there. You get McNeill back early and fortify that defensive line, and that makes things a little easier for you.
Now we wait. It's something to keep an eye on and wait for the Lions to open that 21-day practice window for him. If he's potentially playing in October, then they open that window in September. This thing could happen fast. We'll see.
