The Detroit Lions improved to 4-1 as they obliterated a conference rival on the road, and it’s possible no team had a worse day. They lost pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson, their most indispensable player, to a gruesome broken left leg that forced him to leave the field on a cart, with the entire team surrounding him as medical personnel lifted him onto it.
Hutchinson’s lower left leg bent at a terrible angle as it collided with a teammate when he sacked the Dallas Cowboys’ Dak Prescott. Hutchinson slammed his mouthguard and tore off his gloves. Physicians immobilized Hutchinson’s leg on the field. Fox did not show the replay, broadcaster Kevin Burkhardt said, because the injury was so stomach-turning. The Lions later said he had a broken tibia and would stay in the Dallas area after the team departed.
The injury is foremost a personal hardship for Hutchinson and a sobering reminder of the risks that NFL players live with. It also delivered a brutal blow to a Super Bowl contender that looked like the best team in the NFC as it destroyed the host Cowboys, 47-9. Hutchinson has blossomed into everything the Lions could have dreamed of when they drafted him second overall in 2022. He leads the NFL with 7.5 sacks, and Detroit’s defense is built around Hutchinson’s ability to pressure the quarterback. The tight man coverage that defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn prefers works because he can count on Hutchinson to limit the passing offense’s time by himself.
