Aidan Hutchinson may not be stacking the eye-popping numbers many expected just yet, but the Detroit Lions edge rusher has found a source of help up front that could change that fast: DJ Wonnum.
Wonnum has turned into one of the early surprises of Detroit’s pass rush, and his production is starting to show up in a big way. He leads the Lions with five sacks, just ahead of Hutchinson, a twist that Hutchinson clearly welcomes.
That matters because Hutchinson entered the 2026 season with real buzz around his chances to chase Defensive Player of the Year honors. ESPN analyst Seth Walder even made Hutchinson his bold prediction for the award. Walder hasn’t backed off entirely, but he made it clear Hutchinson will need a stronger statistical finish, especially with the Lions’ defense not consistently pulling its weight.
“Four sacks and a 66th percentile pass rush win rate at edge isn't a bad start, but he's going to have to pick it up to fulfill this prediction. He has the talent level to do it, but the fact that the rest of the Lions' defense is looking so weak is going to hurt Hutchinson's sack total, which in turn will hurt his DPOY chances.”
Detroit did flash what that path could look like in Week 5. After the Arizona Cardinals scored on their opening drive, the Lions defense answered with five first-half stops and controlled things up front. It was the kind of collective effort Hutchinson needs around him if he’s going to stay in the award race.
For Hutchinson, though, the bigger picture still starts with team success. Personal hardware is nice, but the Lions winning is what he’s really after.
Wonnum’s rise has fit neatly into that mindset. Hutchinson said on 97.1’s “Karsch and Anderson” that he loves what Wonnum has brought and sees the two feeding off each other. He also made it clear he wasn’t interested in comparing Wonnum to anyone else from past years.
“I can't compare because that would do my other teammates like Al-Quadin (Muhammad) last year dirty, because Al-Quadin is a different player. DJ (Wonnum's) gotten off to such a great start.
Taking advantage of those one-on-ones is what he's doing. I love it.
It's great because if I get more attention and he starts winning his one-on-ones, teams look at that and go, 'Maybe we don't send the slide here every time. Maybe we've got to switch it up.'
This to me is a win-win. I'm so happy for him and we just got to keep rushing like that.
Keep it up. Keep playing fast.”
That’s the formula Detroit wants: Hutchinson drawing the extra attention, Wonnum cashing in on the opportunities, and the Lions forcing offenses to make uncomfortable choices. If that keeps up, Hutchinson’s award case gets stronger - and Detroit’s front seven gets a lot harder to deal with.
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