Lions star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson suffered a serious leg injury in Sunday's game against the Cowboys.
Hutchinson was doing what he does best, putting pressure on the quarterback to take down Dallas' Dak Prescott for a sack in the third quarter.
He stayed on the turf holding his leg as players on both teams took a knee and prayed around the 2022 No. 2 overall pick.
How bad is Hutchinson's injury? The Sporting News has you covered with the latest updates below.
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Aidan Hutchinson injury updates
Hutchinson was carted to the locker room with a leg injury during the third quarter of the Lions' game against the Cowboys on Sunday.
Detroit was routing Dallas by 21 points at the time of the injury and Hutchinson's constant pressure on Prescott was a major reason for that. The star pass rusher got to Prescott for his first sack of the game but got tangled up in a scrum of players.
He immediately held his knee and stayed down on the turf as players from both teams took a knee around him.
Aidan Hutchinson is down after the previous play. pic.twitter.com/1l1kTN7Blb
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) October 13, 2024
FOX declined to show replays of Hutchinson's injury due to its graphic nature. He was quickly ruled out of the contest.
During head coach Dan Campbell's postgame press conference, he said that Hutchinson has been diagnosed with a broken tibia and that the defensive end would be having immediate surgery. Campbell also added that Hutchinson will be "down for a while," and while the return timetable is unknown, it is likely that the earliest Hutchinson could return may be the playoffs.
Coach Campbell on Aidan Hutchinson pic.twitter.com/dlMIq3nQB0
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) October 14, 2024
The Lions released an update on Hutchinson's status Monday morning, which said that he underwent successful surgery and is expected to make a full recovery from his fractured tibia and fibula.
More details on Aidan Hutchinson from the #Lions: https://t.co/WJ2kKZqejz pic.twitter.com/Cvgnwwl3Ij
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 14, 2024
As expected, the linebacker was sent to the injured reserve on Tuesday, where he will remain for the rest of the season.
Lions place DE Aidan Hutchinson on IR. pic.twitter.com/FqGn8hGJ8Y
— NFL (@NFL) October 15, 2024
Aidan Hutchinson stats
Hutchinson's stats were updated through Sunday's injury exit.
- Sacks: 7.5 (leads NFL)
- Total tackles: 19
- QB hits: 17
- Forced fumbles: 1
Hutchinson led the NFL with 6.5 sacks going into the Lions' Week 6 matchup with the Cowboys. He added another sack to his total before leaving the game with an injury.
Hutchinson is one of the best pass rushers in the NFL, also adding 19 total tackles and 17 quarterback hits.
Who is Aidan Hutchinson's backup?
James Houston is listed as Hutchinson's direct backup on the Lions' depth chart.
Detroit selected Houston out of Florida with its sixth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. He tallied 8.0 sacks as a rookie but missed all but two games of the 2023 season with a broken ankle.
Detroit does not designate positions for its defensive linemen — such as DE, EDGE, or DT — so Houston, Mekhi Wingo, Kyle Peko, and John Paschal could all have opportunities to fill in for Hutchinson.
