Lions edge rusher Za’Darius Smith played 37 of the team’s 48 defensive snaps in last Sunday’s win over the Jaguars, but that’s not enough for defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn.
Smith had a tackle and a half-sack in his first game since being acquired in a trade with the Browns and Glenn said the way that Smith uses his hands made him say ‘whoa’ on the sideline. Glenn said the veteran will “impart anything that he has that he can help the young guys” in addition to making a big impact on the defense with his play.
“Personality out of this world, energy out of this world,” Glenn said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “He really fits who we are when it just comes to us as a team and really us as a defense. He does have violence to him, he does have a physical nature to him. We’re excited to get his count up and see what actually he’s going to do as far as a true edge defender for us this week.”
The Lions are in a place where they can start thinking about the big picture and the prospect of getting Smith fully integrated into the defense by the start of the postseason will be a big part of the back end of their regular season.
