The Lions are starting to see the version of Alim McNeill they paid for.
That was not a given after the defensive tackle signed a four-year, $97 million extension in 2024 and then tore his ACL not long after. He came back last season, but he was plainly not all the way right, and the deal looked shakier by the week. Sunday against the Miami Dolphins offered a much different picture.
McNeill recorded one sack in the game, and Pro Football Focus credited him with two pressures in its initial charting. That pushed him to 5.5 sacks on the season, which is already a career high with roughly half of his sixth NFL season in the books.
A new personal best is now basically locked in, and the bigger story is that he’s doing more than piling up numbers. He’s helping restore the Lions’ investment.
The rebound has been building for a while. When offseason work began in June, McNeill was already signaling that he had gotten back to where he wanted to be.
He had also not played all 17 games since 2022, which has kept him from putting together the kind of full-season breakout his talent has suggested for some time. Even so, there was reason to expect a healthier, sharper version of him this year.
That expectation is showing up in the production. Over seven games, PFF has charged McNeill with 33 quarterback pressures.
Among defensive tackles with at least 64 pass rush snaps, his pass rush win rate was tied for 14th entering Week 9. His run defense has been more uneven from game to game, but he now has six tackles for loss after adding one against Miami.
For the Lions, the value goes beyond McNeill alone. They’ve spent years trying to find another steady source of pass-rush pressure next to Aidan Hutchinson, and too often the supporting cast has been interrupted by injuries or inconsistency. McNeill has flashed in stretches before, but this year he’s finally sustaining it.
There was also a notable development on the edge Sunday. Rookie Derrick Moore turned in what looks like a potential breakthrough performance against the Dolphins while stepping into a bigger role with D.J.
Wonnum out because of a concussion. If Wonnum is able to return, the Lions may actually have some usable depth opposite Hutchinson.
Still, McNeill may be the most important interior piece in the whole equation. Tyleik Williams has value there too, but McNeill is the more disruptive presence on the inside when it comes to making quarterbacks uncomfortable.
By any measure - yearly average, total contract value, or guaranteed money - McNeill is the 12th highest-paid defensive tackle in the league right now. In the second year of that extension, and the first year his cap hit became significant, he is healthy and producing like a player who belongs in that tier.
In Other News...
Vikings Are Stuck In A Division Race Unlike Anything The NFL Sees
The NFC North has turned into the NFLs most relentless race, with all four teams sitting at least three games above .500 through nearly nine weeks. For Detroit, that means every week inside the division carries extra weight, because the Lions are not just chasing wins, they are trying to keep pace in a group where nobody is giving ground. The divisions combined 25-8 record says plenty about how strong the top tier has been, and it has made every matchup feel like it matters twice.
What makes this stretch even more unusual is how well the division has held up both against each other and against the rest of the league. The NFC North is on track to challenge its own standard for the best division record since 2002, which only raises the stakes for the Lions as the season moves deeper into November. In a year when the margins are already thin, Detroit may find that the path through the division is the clearest measure of where it really stands. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Win In Miami Put One Defensive Difference-Maker In The Spotlight
The Lions left Miami with a win built on the kind of defensive pressure they have been leaning on more and more, and one young pass rusher found himself right in the middle of it. Detroits defense helped tilt the game with interceptions and steady heat on Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis, while the offense got enough from Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jake Bates to keep control of the night.
Derrick Moore was one of the players who stood out most in that effort, turning in a disruptive performance that gave Detroit another reason to feel better about its front. Alim McNeill also helped anchor the interior and Gibbs finished the job with a game-sealing touchdown, but the bigger question is how much this version of the Lions defense can keep carrying over as the schedule tightens. [Read more 🡒]
Lions Face A Proving Ground In Munich With Streak On Line
The Lions head to Munich this week with a chance to keep their momentum rolling in one of the NFLs most unusual settings, a matchup that also gives Detroit another measuring stick for where it stands in the league. At 6-2 and riding a four-game winning streak, the Lions have put themselves in position to make this trip feel like more than a novelty, especially with the league continuing to push into new markets through its Global Markets Program.
New England brings its own intrigue, even if the Patriots have been uneven enough to leave plenty of questions hanging over their season. They are 5-4 after a recent loss to Green Bay, and former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady recently pointed to the teams inconsistency as part of the conversation around where it goes from here. For Detroit, the bigger issue is simpler: Munich offers a proving ground, and the Lions will have to show that their strong start can travel just as well as they have. [Read more 🡒]