New Lions defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said Hutchinson looks better than he did last offseason.
“Listen, I’m not saying anything about numbers, statistics or any of that. But, I see a better player than we had last year,” Sheppard said. “And you might be like, ‘Whoa.’ Like, that’s the same thing I said when I saw him out there. I’m like, ‘Whoa.’ “
Added the DC: “I see a better player, quite frankly, and I’m looking for Hutch to have a big season and he’s one of the pillars of the defense.”
The Lions did little to upgrade their pass rush this offseason. They re-signed injury-prone Marcus Davenport and drafted Ahmed Hassanein in the sixth round. The lack of a splash move puts more pressure on Hutchinson to hit the ground running to open the season.
According to reporters on scene, Hutchinson has been moving around well early in camp, playing aggressively, and has had zero restrictions.
“Football has been feeling normal for a long time now,” Hutchinson said on Friday. “I would say first day of OTAs, I got kicked, stepped on, everything under the sun on this leg, and after practice I got up and I was like, ‘All right, we’re good.’ And I think it takes those physical things to happen to you to mentally kind of solidify where you’re at and the confidence and moving past it.”
