When the Lions kicked off training camp earlier this year, there was one player that immediately stood out. That player was Alim McNeill. He looked leaner and he looked stronger. When talking with the media, McNeill stated that he shredded about 20 pounds and in total, he had cut 13% of his body fat.
By doing that, he had stated that one of his main goals was to improve as a pass rusher. Through eight games this season, he’s shown those improvements. It’s transitioned to 16 total tackles with five tackles for loss and four sacks.
Entering this season, McNeill only had three sacks and nine tackles for loss. Off to a fast start, he’s been one of the most consistent players all season for this Lions defense. As the Lions come out of their bye week, McNeill had one of the best performances of his career against the Las Vegas Raiders. Let’s jump into the film room to review the stellar performance from McNeill on Monday night!
Starting with the play above, you’ll see the Lions come out in their nickel defense to defend the Raiders on 3rd down. With this 4-man front, McNeill is highlighted while being aligned as 3-technique.
Prior to the snap, the Raiders motion receiver Davante Adams to the left of their formation. Once the ball is snapped, you can see good burst from McNeill out of his stance but watch the power behind his hands in his pass-rush.
While it looks like he’s intending on penetrating inside, he ends up transitioning to the outside shoulder of the guard with a powerful club move with his right hand. As McNeill breaks through the line-of-scrimmage, he ends up getting tripped up. However, it still leads to some pressure and forces the quarterback get flat footed while checking the ball down to the running back.
The next play I want to highlight is a key 3rd-and-1 for the Raiders. Looking at the play above, the Raiders are at the 50-yard line and are running the football. Highlighted above, you can see McNeill as a 3-technique but he’s over the right guard this time.
Once the ball is snapped, the right guard tries to cut McNeill but defeats it by kicking his feet back, keeping his pad level low and maintains active hands. As he gets past the guard, he stumbles but keeps driving his feet. He does all that while diving at the ankles of the running back. This ultimately leads to the running back being slowed down and in the process, Alex Anzalone does a great job filling and making the tackle.
On the next play, McNeill gets his first pass breakup on the season. Looking at the play above, the Lions defense has McNeill aligned as a 1-technique or 2i-technique. Once the ball is snapped, McNeill shoots the A-gap and as he tries to hit the right guard with an arm over move, he realizes there’s no where for him to go. As the internal clock is ticking for McNeill, he knows the ball is going to be thrown soon. Timing it perfectly, he gets his hands up and deflects this pass perfectly.
Lastly, I want to focus on one of the two sacks from McNeill against the Raiders. Looking at the play above, the Lions send five players at the quarterback. Exploding out of his stance, you can see McNeill highlighted and he tries to beat the right guard one-on-one.
During McNeill’s initial path to the quarterback, he gets denied from the guard staying square and trying to drive him away from the pocket. However, McNeill does a great job recognizing the momentum and drive from the guard and counters perfectly with a spin move. Once he spins, he meets the quarterback in the pocket for a sack.
Overall, there’s been flashes from Alim McNeill throughout much of his career. But now, he’s playing far more consistent and just played one of the best games of his career. Earlier this year, it felt like the Lions were going to be reliant on Aidan Hutchinson to make plays. However, the Lions defense as a whole has stepped up. Much of that is credited to watch McNeill does on the interior for this Lions defense.