The Lions will be getting some defensive reinforcement in time for the playoffs. Per Justin Rogers of the Detroit News, defensive tackle Alim McNeill returned to practice Wednesday.
By designating the 23-year-old for return, the Lions opened his 21-day window for activation. After landing on injured reserve in early December, it sounds like McNeill will be back on the field for Detroit’s season finale, with Rogers noting that the defensive lineman will play with a custom brace on Sunday.
McNeill suffered an MCL injury in Week 13 that required a minimum stay on the IR. Per Rogers, the injury didn’t require surgery and was simply a sprain. That could explain why the third-year pro was able to return to practice so quickly.
“Yeah, it’ll be good. It’s going to be good to get him back,” head coach Dan Campbell said Wednesday (via the team’s website). “And I know he’s looking forward to it just like we are, so he’s excited and he’ll get some work again here for us. You always, this time of year, for him, it’s going to kind of feel like Game 1 again. He’ll be fresh, have fresh legs and a fresh energy about him, so it’s good.”
The 2021 third-round pick was playing some of the best football of his career prior to the injury. McNeill started all 12 of his appearances this season and he collected three sacks, three tackles for loss and four QB hits in the five games prior to being sidelined. Pro Football Focus has been especially fond of his performance in 2023, ranking him fifth among 131 interior defenders.
Defensive tackle Benito Jones has continued playing about 55 percent of his team’s defensive snaps, even with McNeill out of the lineup. Isaiah Buggs and Levi Onwuzurike both saw an uptick in snaps while their teammate was out of the lineup, and the team has already cleared up some of their depth by cutting Buggs from the active roster.
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