{"id":251330,"date":"2025-10-20T09:00:15","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T13:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=251330"},"modified":"2025-10-19T23:35:54","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T03:35:54","slug":"lions-top-interior-lineman-alim-mcneill-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/10\/20\/lions-top-interior-lineman-alim-mcneill-returns\/","title":{"rendered":"Lions Set to Get Major Boost in Game vs. Buccaneers"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

Alim McNeill,<\/a> the Detroit Lions’ elite defensive lineman, returns to the lineup Monday night against the 5-1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

MAC is Back, Detroit Lions’ Top Interior Lineman Returns<\/b><\/h2>\r\n
\"Alim
Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alim McNeill (54) takes the field before kickoff against Green Bay Packers at Ford Field in Detroit on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n

McNeill, who hasn’t played since tearing his ACL in the 2024 Week 15 loss to the Buffalo Bills, was frustrated by his lengthy rehab and is raring to play football.<\/p>\r\n

McNeill, Locked in and Ready to Go\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\r\n

After surgery and a lengthy rehab, McNeill is set to unleash his pent-up frustration on the football field Monday night. His return to the lineup couldn\u2019t come at a better time for the Lions defense, which will be without top safeties Brian Branch (suspension) and Kerby Joseph (knee injury), and starting cornerbacks Terrion Arnold (shoulder) and D.J. Reed (IR).<\/p>\r\n

McNeill was asked earlier this week if he was ready to play Monday night. He responded<\/a>, \u201dOne thousand percent. Probably slept a little longer last night, too, trying to get some more rest for the week. I’m 100 percent locked in right now and ready to go. This is the only thing I’ve been looking forward to. I don’t know how to explain it to you. I’ve been waiting on this day for a long, long time.”<\/p>\r\n

McNeill’s Four-Year Contract Extension\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\r\n

Recognizing the value McNeill brings to the team, the Lions rewarded him with a four-year, $97 million contract extension<\/a> last year, with $55 million guaranteed.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

With the return of a healthy 25-year-old McNeill, the defense gets an immediate boost from one of the NFL\u2019s best veteran linemen, boasting an impressive 93.9 PFF Pass Rush<\/a> Grade on Bull Rushes.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Last year, before his injury, McNeill started all 14 games, recording 25 tackles (17 solo), seven tackles for loss, seven quarterback hits, 3.5 sacks, one pass defense, and one forced fumble. According to Statmuse,<\/a> McNeill\u2019s 17 solo tackles were the most recorded by a Lions defensive lineman last year.<\/p>\r\n

McNeill earned 40-plus quarterback pressures<\/a> in consecutive seasons over the past two years. In 2023, he tied a Detroit franchise record for an interior lineman,<\/a> when he posted a career-best 5.0 sacks for the season. The record was previously set in 2014 by Ndamukong Suh.<\/p>\r\n

McNeill\u2019s Contributions Go Beyond Individual Stats\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/h3>\r\n

However, McNeill\u2019s contribution to the Lions’ defense goes beyond individual stats. Since the opposition can\u2019t adequately cover every threat, his menacing 6\u20192 310 lb. presence on the field frees up other defenders to wreak havoc. Last year\u2019s game against the Buccaneers was a perfect example of just how dangerous the Lions\u2019 defense can be when McNeill is on the field. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Tampa Bay was one of only two teams<\/a> to defeat the Lions during the 2024 regular season. But during the 20-16 loss, Aidan Hutchinson delivered a season-high 4.5 sacks<\/a> on Baker Mayfield<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

While McNeill\u2019s contribution in that game went unheralded, Hutchinson was named the NFC Defensive Player of the Month in September. But Macs efforts freed up Hutchinson to penetrate the line at will. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A Welcome Return For The Lions<\/b><\/h3>\r\n

Dan Campbell is thrilled to have McNeill back, noting the defensive options he provides, \u201cLook, I think it\u2019s – certainly getting (Lions DL Alim McNeill) Mac back creates depth. And so, between (Lions DL DJ) Reader and (Lions DL Roy) Lopez, you\u2019ve got Mac back, (Lions DL Tyler) Lacy can kind of play some of the three-technique, big-end.\u201d<\/p>\r\n

One defensive player who is especially happy to see McNeill return to the lineup is D.J.Reader.<\/a> McNeill\u2019s absence has led the 10-year veteran to be double-teamed for most of the season. Expressing his enthusiasm over McNeill\u2019s impending return, Reader said, \u201cSpirits are high. He\u2019s working hard. From what I see, he looks really, really good. He\u2019s very happy. I mean, he\u2019s got a lot of money, kinda hard to be upset. But he\u2019s super happy, man, and working his ass off to get back.<\/a>“<\/p>\r\n

Added Motivation To Face The Buccaneers<\/b><\/h3>\r\n

As the team prepares to face the NFC-leading Bucs and the likely return of star wide receiver Mike Evans<\/a>, avenging last year’s loss provides additional motivation to emerge with the win.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

With McNeill back in the lineup and an offensive, misleading video<\/a> from the past week fresh in their minds, the Detroit Lions are ready to take on one of the NFC’s best. A familiar ideology has become commonplace with this team: “Detroit v. Everybody.\u201d\u00a0 <\/span>This week with the negative media attention<\/a> surrounding the team, that refrain has only gained added momentum.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Egregious penalties, missed calls, fines, suspensions, media bombardment. Bring it. The onslaught only provides added fuel to fire up this team. \u00a0Strap in. Detroit against Tampa Bay; it’s going to be a good one. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Main Image: Junfu Han – Imagn Images<\/em><\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Alim McNeill, the Detroit Lions’ elite defensive lineman, returns to the lineup Monday night against the 5-1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5208,"featured_media":251614,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[24,36,6431],"tags":[7600],"class_list":["post-251330","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lions","category-nfl-news","category-nfl-teams","tag-alim-mcneill"],"modified_by":"Isaac Zuniga","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251330","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5208"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=251330"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251330\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":251616,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/251330\/revisions\/251616"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/251614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=251330"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=251330"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=251330"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}