Although the Detroit Lions defeated the Dallas Cowboys emphatically in Week 6, it wasn’t all celebrations in Arlington last Sunday. In the win, the Lions also suffered a major loss when Aidan Hutchinson, the key player for Detroit’s pass rush, suffered a broken tibia and fibula in the third quarter.

The goals kept coming for a Lions defensive line that looked much better early in the season. Marcus Davenport suffered his own season-ending injury in the Week 3 game against the Arizona Cardinals, as did Derrick Barnes, the team’s talented and versatile linebacker who wore many roles for Detroit’s defense, including the SAM linebacker role, The team was desperately looking for one-man roster depth during training camp and the preseason.

After all these injuries, how do the Lions move forward with their lofty Super Bowl ambitions for 2024? The knee-jerk reaction is to consider what talent across the league is available via trade. Fans, of course, have big dreams and are looking for players on struggling teams to represent potential solutions to the Lions’ current situation.

Top players such as Maxx Crosby and Trey Hendricksons will also be discussed with Haason Reddick, the former Philadelphia Eagles pass rusher who was traded to the New York Jets last offseason. Reddick has yet to play — or practice — for the Jets as the two are embroiled in a long and messy dispute over a contract extension that the 30-year veteran wants to sign before taking the field. Now he is firmly anchored in the trading bloc.

After a slow start to his NFL career, Reddick emerged as one of the league’s best pass rushers in his fourth season, collecting 12.5 sacks. Since his breakout season, Reddick has totaled 50.5 sacks over the past four years – the fourth-most sacks by a player in that span, according to Stathead.

The problem with Reddick’s deployment to Detroit is that he wouldn’t fill the void left by Hutchinson along the defensive line – he would be a replacement for Barnes at the team’s SAM linebacker position.

First of all, Reddick isn’t a particularly good run defender and certainly isn’t the size of player Detroit is looking to get an edge. At 6-foot-1, 220 pounds, Reddick fits the mold of Detroit’s pass-rushing linebacker, similar to Barnes (6-foot-1, 250 pounds) and Houston (6-foot-1, 250 pounds). Hutchinson (6-foot-7, 285 pounds), Josh Paschal (6-foot-3, 275 pounds) and Marcus Davenport (6-foot-6, 265 pounds) give you an idea of ​​the size and length of the guy the Lions have place emphasis on their edge defenders, who need the ability to both break the pocket in pass rushing and hold the edge in run defense.

Reddick’s run defense has been…present throughout his career. It’s certainly not his strong point, although he gets the opportunities. In 2023, Reddick ranked 110th in run-stop rate (3.5%) among 120 qualified edge defenders and recorded just nine stops in 262 run-defense snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. In 2022, he ranked 100th out of 128 qualified edge defenders in run-stop rate (4.3%). The year before, he finished just outside the top 50 (t-56) with a run stop rate of 6.4%.

The quarterback’s commitment is his calling card. So considering his suitability as a backup for the team at SAM, wasn’t it Houston’s inability to come out on top in run defense or drop back in coverage that made him just another man in the room? Reddick has played 48, 66 and 73 coverage snaps each of the last three years after posting a 29.2 coverage grade in 347 coverage snaps in 2019, ranking 165th out of 168 qualified players.

The other obvious issue is the contract Reddick wants to sign before returning to action. Detroit has taken care of itself this year, signing players like Jared Goff, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown and most recently David Montgomery to contract extensions. Talks have also reportedly begun between the Lions and Alim McNeill. So while Detroit has opened the checkbook to reward and secure its mainstays on offense, the team has yet to make a serious financial commitment to anyone on defense. Would the first player Detroit mentors on that side of the ball be a player who hasn’t played a single down for the team? The same player who would still need to get into football shape and need a period of adjustment before being suitable for Aaron Glenn’s defence?

Speaking of costs, it’s hard to say what kind of trade capital the Jets will expect in return. They spent a conditional pick on Reddick in the third round and saw no return for it on the field. So it stands to reason that they will look for a location in this stadium. To further complicate matters for the Lions, built into the terms of this trade is that if the Jets were to trade him to an NFC team, New York would instead have to give up a second-round pick. So either the Jets won’t try to deal with a team like the Lions or it will cost Detroit a little more.

With Reddick, it’s not a question of talent, but rather a question of fit – both schematically and financially – that poses more questions than answers for the Lions, especially after Hutchinson’s injury.