The Lions enter the 2023 season with just two of the NFL's top-100 players, according to NFL.com. The same two who cracked CBS Sports' ranking of the NFL's top-25 players ages 25 and younger: Amon-Ra St Brown (No. 24, trailing eight other receivers) and Penei Sewell (No. 22, trailing two other offensive tackles). Both of them, says Valenti, "are going to take major steps forward this year:"
"I think Sewell establishes himself as the best right tackle in football and I think Amon-Ra is going to flirt with being one of the 12 best wide receivers in the game. Amon-Ra is a red-ass, he's a dog, a competitor. He reminds me of Hines Ward, one of those tough, nasty slot players."
Just one defensive end ranked among the top-25 players ages 25 and under: 49ers All-Pro Nick Bosa. Aidan Hutchinson, runner-up for Defensive Rookie of the Year last season when he notched 9.5 sacks, was an honorable mention. Rico says Hutchinson will crack the ranking next year:
"The Lions mismanaged his early games. I kept saying, if they play him like he played at Michigan, he'll get a lot better. All of the sudden they moved him to the weak side and he started to get a lot more production. But he's gotta prove it more than one year. He didn't have that Sauce Gardner type of impact where you're like, man, this kid can be special. You see the potential with him. I think he'll be on the list next year."
Valenti says Hutchinson, 22, "is going to be a good player, but his pass rush win rate needs to get a hell of a lot better:"
"He was only winning about 13 percent of the time, and I don't want to hear about sacks. Sacks is a lucky number. Sometimes your teammates rush the quarterback into a sack you get. Aidan has to become more effective in win rate. He's a good player. But if you're going to be one of the top 25 guys in the sport 25 or under, I got news for you: Amon-Ra and Penei Sewell have done a hell of a lot more."
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