On this week’s St. Brown podcast, Detroit Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson received a very high compliment from one of the best offensive tackles of the past few decades.
Now-retired left tackle Terron Armstead was the guest this week, and the former Saint and Dolphin was talking about a joke he made when he said that Jared Verse forced him to retire in 2025.
His overall point was that players were getting so big and so athletic that his 33-year-old body could no longer hold up. And while the discussion started with Verse, Armstead—unprompted—brought up the time he faced Hutchinson in 2022 when the Dolphins beat the Lions.
“I played Aidan his rookie year, and he’s an alien, bro,” Armstead said. “I had no idea he was 6-(foot)-7. I’m thinking he’s 6-3, 6-4. I see the kid, he’s like 6-9. And with most rookies, I can change up sets, they can’t read it. Jump sets, all of that. He’s seeing all of it. He was fire, bro. His rookie year? He was fire, crazy.
“I locked his ass up, but—in Detroit, in Detroit—he was fire, bro. I don’t want to play him again. I never want to see that kid again, ever. I’m happy I never played him (again).”
To Armstead’s credit, he did shut down Hutchinson that game. The Lions defensive end was held to just one tackle, three pressures, and a 57.3 PFF grade—his third-lowest grade of the season. But for Armstead to still see the crazy potential in Hutchinson is both a credit to Hutchinson’s mental abilities on that day and Armstead’s perception. Hutchinson has since gone on to make two Pro Bowls, produce 43.0 sacks in 56 games, and finish 2023 with the second-most pressures in the NFL and 2025 with the most.
You can watch the entire podcast here. Armstead also has some very high praise for Dan Campbell that we’ll cover in a separate piece, but the entire interview is certainly worth watching.
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