The Lions drafted defensive end Aidan Hutchinson at No. 2 overall with the idea that he can make an immediate impact.
There’s still plenty of time before Detroit plays its first game against Philadelphia. And Hutchinson hasn’t even practiced in pads yet, so there’s only so much for a team to evaluate.
But head coach Dan Campbell has still liked Hutchinson’s steady improvement throughout the offseason program.
“I told my wife this last night, I was like, ‘You know what’s great about him is he’s quietly getting better right in front of us,’” Campbell said Thursday, via Tony Garcia of the Detroit Free Press. “He doesn’t say anything, he listens, he’s like a sponge in there, he absorbs the information, watches how things are done and the way coaches want them done and then he’s got a motor and he goes.
“He just learns, and gets better every day, and you see it.”
There are high expectations for Hutchinson as a rookie. He recorded 14.0 sacks and a pair of forced fumbles for Michigan as a senior in 2021.