The NFL news cycle is picking up steam with teams getting ready to report to training camp over the next week.

From a Detroit Lions perspective, it’s been nothing but bad news.

The injury bug has already bitten a member of the Detroit Lions’ defense, with defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike set to miss at least the first four games of the 2025 season after being placed on the reserve Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. Making matters worse is that the upcoming extension for star edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson keeps going up in price.

Let’s dig into the two biggest news items of the week and what they mean for the Lions long-term.

New >>: Onwuzurike to miss at least first four games of 2025 season.

Views >> Onwuzurike was expected to be a critical member of the Lions’ defensive line with Alim McNeill sidelined with a knee injury, but instead, he’ll leave another vacancy for a defense that was hoping to turn a corner on its injury fortunes.The Lions will be without two of their top three interior defenders for an unknown amount of time. McNeill has long been expected to miss the majority of the season, but the Onwuzurike injury has some ominous clouds hanging around it.

It was curious that Onwuzurike, who has missed significant time due to back injuries earlier in his career, only signed a one-year, $4 million deal to return while the rest of the free-agent defensive tackle class was having bags of gold bars dropped in their laps. Onwuzurike seemed to be past his injury struggles, having played in all but one contest last season, but perhaps somebody (or some teams) knew something we didn’t.

It’s too early to speculate what the long-term status of Onwuzurike is; we’ll hear from Lions coach Dan Campbell when the teams begin training camp practices Sunday. But as far as what this means for training camp, expect there to be a great deal of attention on the defensive line and plenty of speculation whether or not it’s good enough to win another NFC North title and take a shot at the Super Bowl.

The team is already in a precarious situation on the edge, with Marcus Davenport trying to prove his own injury woes are over and Josh Paschal, who’s routinely kicked inside as an extra interior defender, going on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) list on Thursday. Second-year defensive tackle Mekhi Wingo, another one of the interior linemen we projected to make the 53-man roster, also went on the PUP list (active PUP, which means he can be activated at any time) on Thursday.

Suddenly, the Lions are facing a position where their first-round draft choice, Ohio State’s Tyleik Williams, will have to start in Week 1 next to DJ Reader.

All told, there are some players who will inevitably benefit from the fact Onwuzurike and McNeill are set to miss all of camp. Third-year defensive tackle Brodric Martin now has a path to the roster, as do a number of the players who joined the team amid injury turmoil last season and are trying to hang on to a spot, such as Myles Adams and Pat O’Connor.

News >> T.J. Watt, Steelers reset edge defender market.

Views >> Another elite edge rusher reset the market this week, with the Pittsburgh Steelers and T.J. Watt reportedly striking a three-year deal worth $123 million, a price tag of $41 million annually.

For the Lions, it’s turned out to be an unfortunate time to have to meet Aidan Hutchinson at the negotiating table. Since the Lions have been eligible to extend Hutchinson beginning March 12, the highest-paying non-quarterback contract in NFL history has been recorded several times, going from the $35.5 million annual salary given to Las Vegas Raiders star Maxx Crosby in early March to the $41 million earned by Watt this week.

That’s a jump of $6.5 million per season, the price of a decent roster player.

Oh, and Micah Parsons (Dallas Cowboys) and Trey Hendrickson (Cincinnati Bengals) are reportedly engaged in talks to get their new deals, too. Hendrickson might not set a new record due to age concerns and organizational stinginess, but the 26-year-old Parsons will surely command a number that challenges Watt’s record, if not bests it.

The rising market is a good example of why general manager Brad Holmes has tried to extend good players sooner rather than later. Offensive tackle Penei Sewell, wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and quarterback Jared Goff all inked extensions early last offseason, saving the Lions a good chunk of change in the process. Holmes has been open about wanting to extend Hutchinson since he spoke at the annual league meetings in March, so it’s probable the team has been trying to get it done before the latest wave of pay raises.

Some would argue that Hutchinson has not yet proven to be worth a top-of-market extension, which is what makes this a little complicated. He doesn’t have the All-Pro status or the Defensive Player of the Year awards that the rest of the players in his presumed salary tier have.

But he was on that trajectory before suffering a season-ending leg injury in Week 6, and even if he doesn’t reset the market, the fifth-highest paid edge rusher today (Nick Bosa, 49ers, $34 million per year) is making $9.5 million per year more than the fifth-highest paid edge rusher (Montez Sweat, Chicago Bears, $24.5 million) was before Crosby signed his deal.

The four richest edge rusher contracts were all signed this season, and that’s with two more (Hendrickson and Parsons) likely on the way.