Detroit Urged to Snag NFL’s Top Trade-Ready Edge Rusher
The Detroit Lions have a star in edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, but have struggled to find a competent counterpart who can pressure quarterbacks off the opposite edge.
They may have a chance to add that missing piece at the upcoming trade deadline, with several analysts predicting the team could take a run at Miami Dolphins edge rusher Jaelan Phillips. The Dolphins are watching their season spiral and could be just a few weeks away from being essentially eliminated from playoff contention, leading many to peg them as sellers at the trade deadline.
The Lions could take advantage, taking aim at Phillips to round out their edge rushing group.
Lions Could Add ‘Very Effective’ Defensive End
Vinnie Iyer of The Sporting News identified top trade candidates for all 32 NFL teams, noting that the Lions may have their eyes on Cincinnati Bengals star Trey Hendrickson but would find Phillips a more attainable player.
“With Hendrickson unlikely to happen and the Lions may be being a bit reserved in giving the Bengals that great desired haul, they can take a shot on another very effective would-be complement to Defensive Player of the Year candidate Aidan Hutchinson,” Iyer wrote.
Phillips has endured some injury issues over the last two years, appearing in just 12 total games between the 2023 and 2024 seasons. But he has proven to be a productive pass rusher when healthy, averaging more than seven sacks in each of his first three seasons in the NFL.
Reporter Mike Payton of AtoZ Sports predicted the Lions could land Phillips with a Day 3 draft pick.
“The Lions will have to give a high Day 3 pick to get it done, but what they get back is a player who has racked up 22 pressures this season and is just begging to take advantage of the one-on-one opportunities that Aidan Hutchinson and Alim McNeill provide,” Payton wrote. “In my opinion, this is the deal the Lions should do at the deadline because there’s a chance for a future, it doesn’t cost a first-round pick, and you don’t have to break the bank.”
Payton noted that Phillips is the “best edge rusher” on the trade market, which could make competition fierce to land him.
Lions Could Look at Other Targets
Iyer noted that the Lions could look at another potential trade target on the Dolphins, edge rusher Bradley Chubb.
Other potential targets could be slipping out of their grasp. New York Jets edge rusher Jermaine Johnson, seen as a top trade candidate, said this week that he wants ot stay with the team and expressed that on social media.
“I’m definitely wanted here, and I want to stay here,” Johnson told ESPN. “That’s been understood. Hence the tweet.”
The Lions have used the trade deadline to add help in their edge rushing group before. They made something of an emergency addition last year, acquiring Za’Darius Smith to lead the position group after Hutchinson suffered a season-ending injury in October.
The Lions have put together a Super Bowl-caliber roster and could take an aggressive approach this season, especially after the pass rush has faltered in last season’s early exit from the playoffs.
JJ McCarthy Hit With Crushing Criticism Ahead of Vikings Return
The Minnesota Vikings looked as though they may have struck gold with quarterback J.J. McCarthy following the three touchdowns for which he accounted in the team’s 11-point fourth-quarter comeback against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in Week 1.
But nothing has gone right for the 22-year-old QB since, and little has bounced in favor of the organization as a whole.
McCarthy suffered a high-ankle sprain the following week in a 16-point home loss to the Atlanta Falcons and hasn’t played a snap since. Veteran Carson Wentz led the Vikings to a 2-3 record in the meantime, which included a 27-point loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on the most recent edition of “Thursday Night Football.”
Minnesota spent a boatload of money in free agency to solidify the interior of its offensive and defensive lines, but the O-line can’t stay healthy and hasn’t offered quality protection to any of the three quarterbacks who have lined up behind it, while the defense has struggled to stop the run all season.
Now with a record of 3-4 and 10 days of rest before heading to Ford Field to take on a 5-2 Detroit Lions team that will be coming off of its bye week, McCarthy appears likely to return to the starting lineup. However, he will do so as the “most disappointing player” on a roster chalk full of disappointments, per Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report.
“I try not to hit injured guys too hard here, but it’s no doubt extremely disappointing that McCarthy has been sidelined again this season,” Gagnon wrote Friday, October 24. “His 67.2 passer rating when healthy is the clincher.”
Carson Wentz Hasn’t Played Well Enough to Keep Job as Vikings’ Starting QB
GettyQuarterback Carson Wentz of the Minnesota Vikings.
Several analysts around the league speculated that Minnesota engaged in a soft benching of McCarthy, slow-playing his injury across six weeks due to how much he struggled in seven of the eight quarters he actually played during his sophomore NFL season after missing his entire rookie campaign with a knee issue.
To look at McCarthy’s statistics, it isn’t difficult for one to see the merit in that particular conspiracy theory. Beyond his 67.2 passer rating, McCarthy has completed just 58.5 percent of his passes for 301 yards, two TDs and three INTs.
However, after Wentz’s performance on Thursday night (15-of-27 passing for 144 yards, one TD and one INT), which came after a two-interception game in a loss against the Philadelphia Eagles the weekend prior, the time for McCarthy’s return has arrived.
Vikings Coach Kevin O’Connell Says J.J. McCarthy Will Start Against Lions if Healthy
GettyMinnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell told reporters during his postgame press conference that if McCarthy is healthy enough to go, he will start in Detroit on November 2.
O’Connell then shared an optimistic update on the quarterback’s health during his media availability Friday.
“I do feel positive about where both Brian O’Neill and Christian Darrisaw are today,” O’Connell said. “The same can be said for J.J. McCarthy at the quarterback position. He will get some work in. Got some work today and will hopefully get some work throughout the early part of the week, which will lead him into a full week of preparation. And [I] feel positive about where he’s at as well.”
McCarthy has a chance to shed the moniker of disappointment and reclaim the feel-good he provided the Vikings and their fanbase in Week 1, but the task won’t be easy against a rested group of Lions that have generally played great football since a disappointing season-opener against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
