The Detroit Lions have to find a way to bring Za’Darius Smith back. His contract expired earlier this offseason after the Lions acquired him from the Cleveland Browns at the trade deadline. He did everything he needed to in helping a depleted defensive line.
Aidan Hutchinson broke his leg, which left a major void in the pass rush and limited options. Hutchinson is still rehabbing and in a video of him working out that was recently posted, it’s clear he’s not what he once was, yet. Detroit has to have the urgency to bring in someone who can provide pressure.
There’s been talk that possibly Matthew Judon could land in Detroit, but the Lions would be better off bringing Smith back. He knows the system, though Aaron Glenn is now gone, and he was productive, recording four sacks (nine total last year) once he got to Detroit.
Detroit shouldn’t overthink this and plan to bring back Za’Darius Smith
According to SideLion Report, the Lions have always kept the door ajar for Smith to return to Ford Field this season. Brad Holmes essentially cut Smith to let him make his money elsewhere and let it be known that they weren’t abandoning him; they just weren’t going to overpay for him.
With Smith still unsigned and the market drying up, the Lions have every reason to bring him back. Smith and Hutchinson together might not be the most lethal duo with Hutchinson’s recovery, but it could be a step in the right direction.
Smith is the better option over Judon, in my opinion. Over the last two seasons, Judon had 9.5 sacks. Smith had nine sacks last season. Both are aging vets, but Smith has proven to still be destructive while Judon is slowly fizzling out.
The Lions will probably re-sign Smith off the fact that they drafted just two defensive lineman in the draft, one of them an interior lineman. Maybe they were waiting to see what Hutchinson’s rehab looked like. Maybe they were interested in seeing if any other names popped up before jumping the gun on Smith.
At this point, it just doesn’t make sense not to bring him back. Even if he regresses slightly from last year, he’s still a player who provided a spark for the Lions when they needed one most.
The fact that they didn’t jump at any rookie EDGE rushers makes it clear they are eyeing a free agent. Smith might just be atop that list.