Aidan Hutchinson: Lions Still Feel Like 'Underdogs'

Detroit Lions are working to avoid buying too much into positive praise.

The Detroit Lions concluded the 2022 season on a torrid pace. They won eight of their last 10 games, and finished the campaign with a winning record (9-8) for the first time since 2017.

Fans and pundits alike have certainly taken notice, and the Lions will subsequently enter the upcoming season with increased expectations.

In fact, Detroit has become the heavy preseason favorite to win the NFC North division, something it hasn’t done since 1993. That’s when the division was still called the NFC Central.

Despite the ever-growing “hype train” surrounding the Lions, second-year pro Aidan Hutchinson still views himself and his teammates as “underdogs.”

“It’s kind of hard not to see it. We have the TVs on in there. It just pops up, so you see it and I think it’s smart that a lot of our guys stay off of it, just because it can get to your head a little bit,” Hutchinson told reporters Sunday, regarding the heightened expectations for Detroit entering 2023. “I think we’re doing a good job of keeping our mentality and keeping what we’ve been doing, especially even last year and just building off it. So, I think we’re doing a good job with our mentality. And, we keep that underdog mentality. We haven’t won anything yet. So, people, obviously, there’s a lot of expectations. But, then again, we still feel like the underdogs.”

Hutchinson, the 2022 No. 2 overall pick, is coming off a highly impressive rookie campaign.

The EDGE defender finished last season with 9.5 sacks and 15 quarterback hits. He also compiled 52 total tackles, including nine for loss.

Additionally, the University of Michigan product amassed three interceptions, three passes defensed and two fumble recoveries. In doing so, he became the first rookie in NFL history to record a season with at least 7.5 sacks, three interceptions and a pair of fumble recoveries. It helped him finish runner-up for the Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year award.

As Hutchinson embarks upon his second NFL training camp, he feels like the game “has slowed down” for himself.

“Everything just feels a lot easier,” Hutchinson told reporters on Day 1 of training camp Sunday. “I feel like I have a better grasp on what I do, and just kind of my position in the scheme and in the system. Just being out here today, it was a lot less tiring. You’re not thinking as much. And, I’m just rolling and having fun.”

It’s a good sign for a player who is coming off as successful of a year as Hutchinson is.

Per Pro Football Focus, he recorded a very solid 80.7 overall grade in 2022, while earning a 70.2 pass-rush mark.

Entering the 2023 season, Hutchinson doesn’t intend on adding any moves to his pass-rushing repertoire.

“You know, I’m not a big believer in doing too many different things. I think it’s important to have two-three moves, and as long as you can do those at a really high level, you probably won’t be blocked,” the Dearborn (Mich.) Divine Child High School alum expressed. “But, I think the second you start trying to add this and add that, it complicates the game. And, I just think it’s important to keep pass-rush and stuff like that simple.”