OCTOBER 20: With no setbacks having taken place in recent days, McNeill is indeed set to make his debut tonight. The Lions have activated him from the reserve/PUP list, per a team announcement.
OCTOBER 15: After returning to practice earlier this month, Lions defensive tackle Alim McNeill is nearing his long-awaited season debut. Head coach Dan Campbell told 97.1 The Ticket on Wednesday that McNeill will suit up against the Buccaneers in Week 7 in a showdown between NFC contenders (via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press).
“Barring something happening this week, Alim’s fricking playing, man,” Campbell said.
McNeill, now in his fifth season, has emerged as an integral piece of Detroit’s line of defense because the team selected him within the third round of the 2021 draft. After mostly working as a reserve as a rookie, the 6-foot-2, 310-pounder has began in all 44 appearances since his second yr. McNeill totaled 25 tackles and three.5 sacks in 14 games last season before suffering a torn ACL in a mid-December loss to the Bills.
Now 10 months faraway from his injury, the 25-year-old McNeill is able to return to motion. Notably, Wednesday marks the one-year anniversary of McNeil landing a four-year, $97MM contract extension. Considering the Lions’ investment in McNeil, they might ease him back in upon his return. The Lions have a bye following their matchup with the Buccaneers, which can give McNeill per week to rest after his first game back.
Although he missed the Lions’ last three regular-season games, McNeil still led their defensive tackles in snaps in 2024. D.J. Reader has paced the group this yr, while first-round rookie Tyleik Williams has received the second-most snaps. Roy Lopez, Pat O’Connor, and Tyler Lacy have also gotten chunk of playing time in depth roles during McNeill’s absence.
Despite going without McNeill this season, Detroit’s defense still ranks fourth within the NFL in sacks and ninth in yards per game, though it’s a middle-of-the-pack fifteenth in points per contest. With the 4-2 Lions seeking to bounce back from a loss to the Chiefs and down a number of key defenders of their secondary (D.J. Reed, Terrion Arnold, and Brian Branch if his one-game suspension holds up), McNeill shall be a welcome reinforcement against the Bucs (5-1), the No. 1 seed within the NFC.