Aidan Hutchinson said he spoke to Myles Garrett about teaming up on Lions

Pairing Aidan Hutchinson and Myles Garrett would be ‘scary’

If you hang around the National Football League long enough, you grow accustomed to the cliches and adages.

The outcome of Super Bowl LIX is going to thrust a few of those into the spotlight.

One such adage is the notion that the NFL is a “copycat” league. If something works well for one team, the other 31 are going to try and find a way to replicate that success in their own organization. With the Philadelphia Eagles riding a stout rushing attack to Super Bowl LIX, one might wonder if the other 31 teams are going to make the rushing attack a focus this offseason. How can they get their version of PHiladelphia’s offensive line? How can they put their version of Saquon Barkley behind that group?

We are, perhaps, already seeing that begin to play out. Daniel Jeremiah, one of the brightest media minds when it comes to the NFL Draft, released his latest mock draft and it included something we do not often see these days: A first-round run on running backs.

Whether that is due to depth at the position — RB is a deep group this year — or the copycat factor remains to be seen. Perhaps a bit of both is at play.

Another adage that we often see around the NFL? The idea of getting pressure with four. In the buildup to any big game, such as Super Bowl LIX, the notion of getting pressure with four is an easy storyline. “Well, if Team X can get pressure on Quarterback Y in this game, they’ll have a good chance at slowing down their offense.”

I have said, or typed, some variation of that phrase more times than I care to admit.

But that is exactly what played out in Super Bowl LIX. By the numbers, Patrick Mahomes had one of the worst performances from a quarterback in Super Bowl history, and that is not a knock on him or his talent, but rather a tribute to what the Eagles defensive front was able to do that Sunday night. Mahomes finished Super Bowl LIX having completed 21 of 32 passes for 257 yards and 3 touchdowns, along with a pair of interceptions. He was also pressured throughout the night and sacked six times. According to charting data from Pro Football Focus Mahomes completed 4-of-9 passes when pressured, one of those going for a touchdown and another going for an interception.

Pro Football Focus charting data had the Eagles with just two blitzes on the night.

Philadelphia’s constant pressure was a byproduct not of blitzing, but rather of their front four. Josh Sweat, Nolan Smith Jr., and company had themselves a night down in New Orleans.

A night that will have many GMs wondering if their roster is capable of pulling that off.

We now head into the NFL offseason, the time when GMs turn their minds to how they can duplicate what teams are having success with around the league. The ability to get pressure with four is going to be a focus for many teams around the NFL this spring, and the incoming NFL Draft class has several pass rushers, starting with Abdul Carter, who can certainly help.

But the news that Myles Garrett has requested a trade is another major storyline, and there will be no shortage of suitors for the former Defensive Player of the Year.

Including the Detroit Lions.

For the past two seasons, the Lions have made a run at a Super Bowl, but fallen short. Two years ago Detroit was leading the NFC Championship Game in San Francisco at halftime, but a 17-point outburst from the 49ers saw the Lions come up short of Super Bowl LVIII.

This past year the Lions overcame substantial injuries, particularly on the defensive side of the ball, to secure the top seed in the NFC. But those injuries — and a tremendous Washington Commanders offense — were too much for the Lions to overcome in the Divisional Round.

Now, Detroit heads into the offseason getting many of those players back, including pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson. Furthermore, the Lions have a substantial amount of cap space available, more than $50 million according to Over the Cap.

This is the year to make a big move, for a player like Garrett.

It is a move that many have discussed, including the two players themselves.

“If me and Myles were to pair up, that would be deadly, you know?” Hutchinson said on a recent episode of The Squeeze podcast. “I was talking to him, we were at the Honors, and we were just talking about what could be. And although it’s probably unlikely, I think I would be thrilled to play next to him if it were to happen. But, yeah, our whole D-line would be totally elevated, and we would, whew, that’d be a scary defensive line.

“We get along, too. I’ve seen him these last few years at different things. He texted me after I got hurt — it was just a cool thing,” added Hutchinson. “Guys outside of your own team who reach out to you, so I think he’s a good dude. If he does, great, but I don’t know. We’ll see. But that would be awesome.”

At first blush there might be some hurdles to such a move for Detroit. If the Cleveland Browns were to give in to Garrett’s trade request and move the pass rusher, it would come at a steep price. Former NFL GM Mike Mayock, speaking recently about a potential Garrett trade, indicated it might start with a pair of first-round picks. “You’re probably looking at a minimum of a couple of first-round picks, plus some kind of mix of existing players and/or another pick or two,” Mayock said.

Would Detroit pay that kind of price?

History indicates they might not. Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell have been very patient in building the Lions roster, preferring to do so via the draft. Detroit has enjoyed the benefit of trades like the Matthew Stafford deal, which not only landed Jared Goff but added players such as Jameson Williams, Sam LaPorta, and Jahmyr Gibbs with the picks they secured in the trade.

Still, the allure of pairing Garrett with Hutchinson will be hard to ignore, particularly when you step back and look at Detroit’s roster on the whole. While it is easy to say that you are never a single player away from a Super Bowl, Detriot has come tantalizingly close the past two seasons, only to fall short.

But if they could, as the adage says, get pressure with four ...

Given what we saw in Super Bowl LIX, no price might be too steep to pay for that.