For the first time this offseason, Aidan Hutchinson was spotted at the Detroit Lions’ offseason program.
For a few weeks now, the Detroit Lions have been posting photo galleries of daily offseason workouts, but there has been one noticeable absence. Defensive end Aidan Hutchinson hadn’t shown up in a single photo gallery since Detroit started their offseason program on April 22. But for Monday’s gallery (May 12), Hutchinson was front and center as the Lions took their practice field.
At this point, it’s unclear what level of participation the Lions star defensive end is taking part in. Last month at The Masters, Hutchinson revealed that he was in the final phase of rehab from his broken fibula and tibia suffered in October.
“I’m there. I’d say I’m good,” Hutchinson said. “I’ve got my last evaluation test when I get back (to Detroit). I leave today, and I go back tomorrow to the rehab. I’m going to finish those evals, and once I knock them out of the park, I’ll be on my way and done with rehab.”
The photo of him at Allen Park is just of him standing around in a tank top, so we don’t know if he’s running, taking part in any drills, or just working with a trainer at the side. The Lions are currently in Phase Two of the offseason program, which allows teams to participate in the following on-field drills:
On-field workouts may include individual or group instruction and drills, as well as “perfect play drills,” and drills and plays with offensive players lining up across from offensive players and defensive players lining up across from defensive players, conducted at a walk-through pace. No live contact or team offense vs. team defense drills are permitted.
This is not the first time we’ve seen Hutchinson at the team facility this offseason. Several videos of his rehab were taken from the practice field. However, this is the first time he has been spotted during team activities.
We’ll get a better idea of how much Hutchinson is practicing when Organized Team Activities (commonly known as OTAs) begin on May 28. But, for now, this is a big step in the right direction.
