The Maxx Crosby trade is off, and while the Detroit Lions are still in the market for a pass rusher to pair with Aidan Hutchinson, it’s tough to see them pivoting to Crosby – if he’s even available – for the same reasons they were considered a longshot in the first place.
The short list:
Things change, and you can never say never in the NFL, but with the new league year set to open at 4 p.m. Wednesday, March 11, it’s worth revisiting the best free-agent edge rushers who could fit the Lions defense.
Trey Hendrickson
Hendrickson is another longshot given his reported asking price of $30-plus million per season, though many believe he’ll ultimately have to accept a lesser deal.
Hendrickson entered the week as the best pass rusher on the market and one of the top free agents overall. He led the NFL with 17½ sacks in 2024 and his time with the New Orleans Saints overlapped with when Dan Campbell was an assistant with them.
He’s also 31 years old and missed 10 games last season following core muscle surgery. But if the Lions decide they want to spend at the position, he’d help their pass rush.
Cam Jordan
Like Hendrickson, Jordan played for the Saints during Campbell’s time as an assistant (2016-20). In fact, New Orleans is the only team the 36-year-old has ever known. Now though, he’s free to sign with other teams and would be a fit as a big end opposite Hutchinson.
Jordan’s best days as a pass rusher are behind him, but he did have 10½ sacks last season and he’s incredibly durable, with just two missed games (for COVID-19 and an eye injury) in his 15-year career.
Al-Quadin Muhammad
Muhammad gave the Lions a pass-rushing boost last season when he set career-highs with 11 sacks, 59 pressures and a pressure rate of 18.1%. The Lions used him primarily in passing situations – he played just 82 run snaps all year – and they need more of an every-down end. But they do have interest in bringing him back.
A couple weeks shy of his 31st birthday, Muhammad might be facing his last chance to cash in after a journeyman career. His market has been slow-moving so far, and that could help the Lions pair him with another player on this list.
Jadeveon Clowney
Clowney is nearly a decade removed from his last Pro Bowl appearance, but he still had 8½ sacks in his age-32 season. He’s big and long and can set an edge in the run game, and he’s no stranger to bouncing around – he’s worn four uniforms in the past four years. Like several players on this list, he’ll likely end up with a one-year deal.
K’Lavon Chaisson
Chaisson is looking for his fourth team in four years after notching a career-high 7½ sacks last season with the New England Patriots. He’s not as good a run defender as others on this list, and he’s never been a full-time starter in his career. There’s some buyer-beware here, but at 26 years old, there might be some upside, too.
A.J. Epenesa
Epenesa is another big pocket-crushing end who could play as a base-down defender with the Lions, though he played primarily off the bench with the Buffalo Bills last season. Epenesa has 24 career sacks and hasn’t quite lived up to the billing he had coming out of Iowa six years ago. But he won’t break the bank and his play style would give the Lions complementary parts on the edge.
Honorable mentions: Cam Sample, Denico Autry, Arnold Ebiketie, Joey Bosa, Bradley Chubb
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Maxx Crosby back on the market for Detroit Lions? Probably not
Reporting by Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
