Lions ideal Aidan Hutchinson replacement is in AFC North but it’s not Za’Darius Smith

The Detroit Lions needed the Cincinnati Bengals to lose to the Las Vegas Raiders and it has nothing to do with the playoff picture. 

The Lions need a replacement for Aidan Hutchinson. It’s been the talk of the Lions aside from how they have made every team they’ve played so far look inferior to them – minus one. There’s plenty of chatter regarding who that replacement should be. 

Most of the conversations have circulated around the AFC North. One media personality even proposed the Cleveland Browns send Myles Garrett to the Lions. Of course neither team would engage in those types of talks. 

That said, the one Browns player that’s been consistently linked to the Lions heavily is Za’Darius Smith. And while that’s more likely to happen, he’s still not the best replacement in the AFC North for Hutchinson. 

Trey Hendrickson would be the ideal replacement for the Lions in Hutchinson’s absence. And if the Bengals had lost to fall to 3-6 on the season, there’s a possibility that could have happened. 

Trey Hendrickson’s performance against Raiders is proof he’s best Aidan Hutchinson replacement

When the New Orleans Saints let Hendrickson walk in free agency after the 2020 season, Cincinnati wasted no time making a deal. And since he’s been in Cincinnati, he’s been one of the most destructive edge rushers in the NFL. 

Since his first season with the Bengals, he’s recorded three seasons with 10 or more sacks. He reached his NFL-leading 11th sack thanks to his four sacks on Sunday. 

Hendrickson recorded a career-high 17.5 sacks last season. He’s the ideal replacement because before Hutchinson was knocked out of the season, he was on pace to have a season just as destructive as Hendrickson. 

Both players are lethal off the edge. Hendrickson would essentially be a carbon copy of Hutchinson. And if the Bengals would have gotten their sixth loss of the season, they could have opted to sell. 

Hendrickson will be 30 years old before the end of the season so it wouldn’t have been a shock if he wanted to land on a contending team. 

While the Lions pass rush has had question marks since Hutchinson went down against Dallas, they’ve managed to win every game since and have allowed more than two touchdowns once in a game against Minnesota. 

Unfortunately, they have just as good of a shot at getting Garrett off the Browns as they do of getting Hendrickson off the Bengals.