Alim McNeill's Development Boosted By Defensive Line Summit

The defensive lineman has been a breakout player early in 2023.

Detroit Lions defensive lineman Alim McNeill made plenty of changes this offseason. He slimmed down, trained his body to be more flexible and conditioned to be in a position where he could play more snaps for the team in 2023. 

Through four weeks, those changes have paid off in a major way. He appears to be on his way to a breakout campaign, having already totaled two sacks and three tackles for loss. 

In addition to the changes he made physically, McNeill shared Monday that he attended a defensive line summit hosted by Pete Jenkins in Dallas, Texas, while he was in the state training. This allowed him to deepen his understanding of the game and strengthen the mental aspect of his performance. 

"I learned a lot, I learned a lot actually," McNeill said. "Obviously carried over with me to the season. Just different things, hand placement, different types of steps you can take, different stances, reading different things." 

Working his punch step and power step are two areas where he's grown since participating in the summit. That footwork allows a player to react to the first step of the offensive line and create leverage. 

Among the players he connected with were former Lions players Michael Brockers and Nick Williams.

As McNeill has grown, the Lions have become a top-five run defense in the league. While the third-year player is excited about the success, he's also aware that they have plenty of games remaining to prove their legitimacy. 

"Just cleaning up things technique-wise, obviously, going to the football side of things. Just cleaning up things technique-wise," the defensive tackle said. "We understand things better now, where we're supposed to fit, stuff like that. On the other side of things, our mentality, who we are as a defense, who we are as a team. That's the identity we want to put out there. And also, we want to win games. A key to winning games is helping to stop the run. It's just a mentality thing and just being disciplined. Just playing football and doing what we're coached to do. I'd say it's not really anything special going on, we're just playing good football." 

He's also caught the attention of his teammates with his performance, such as linebacker Derrick Barnes. The Purdue product, who was drafted alongside him in 2021, praised McNeill's strength.

"An amazing player, knows his role, has great technique, strong as hell, I don't understand it, you should see him lift," Barnes said. "But, I knew, everybody knew, he could be a star in this league. Just having him upfront, knowing you're protected as a linebacker, that's a guy you want to play in front of you. He's gonna continue to progress, and he shocked guys last game, he's gonna continue to shock people." 

'Stay on everybody's necks'

With the Lions off to a 3-1 start, they've established clearly that they are the team to beat in the NFC North. McNeill and company's first-half dominance Thursday in Green Bay led the team to a statement win. 

They aren't getting complacent, though, as they begin the second quarter of their schedule. 

"It's cool, we haven't done anything yet, though," McNeill said. "It's still very early. 3-1 does sound great, though. It's good to be in that position, but that can change in a heartbeat. We've just got to stay on everybody's necks these next couple weeks. It feels good to be here, but we haven't done anything yet." 

The run game has ranked near the bottom of the league since Aaron Glenn took over as defensive coordinator in 2021. Yet, his strengths as a coach are coming to the forefront, as the unit has improved steadily in 2023. 

The Lions haven't allowed a team, let alone an individual rusher, to surpass 100 yards through the first four games of the season. Having shown they're capable of success, the defense now has its eyes on becoming the league's best.

"That would be huge. That's our goal, to be the best defense in the league. But, that would be huge," McNeill explained. "That just shows tenacity, violence, the mentality we play with. That's not easy, stopping the run, especially in the NFL, is not easy at all. To be number one, be in that spot, would be huge."