Detroit Lions Receive Best Injury News in Weeks

The Detroit Lions hold the best record in the NFC alongside the Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles. Before last week's loss to the  Buffalo Bills, the were tied for the best record in the league. But the injury bug has begun to catch up with the Lions in a most unrelenting fashion.

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In the loss, Detroit lost running back David Montgomery and defensive tackle Alim McNeill to season-ending knee injuries while defensive backs Carlton Davis broke his jaw and Khalil Dorsey suffered a season-ending ankle injury. The Lions already had more than double the defensive players on injured reserve than any other team and it somehow got worse and bled over to the offensive side of the ball.

Still, Detroit fans are holding out hope; hope that this team can still reach Super Bowl LIX. Should the Lions manage that, they may get one piece of the puzzle back.

As we quickly learned after edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson broke his leg back in Week 6 against the Dallas Cowboys, Hutchinson could be available if the Lions reach the Super Bowl.

Hutchinson appeared on The Squeeze podcast (hosted by celebrity Lions fan Taylor Lautner) which was shown first on NFL Network's Good Morning Football on Tuesday morning and updated his status, saying he's still on track to return if the Lions can reach the promised land.

"I keep telling all the boys when I see them in the facility, I'm like, 'you guys just gotta get there and I promise you I'm gonna be back,'" Hutchinson said in the clip.

Getting there is the hard part. The defense is decimated, and the best teams in the NFL - the Bills, Eagles, and Vikings - are starting to heat up while the Lions continue to lose key players left and right, especially on defense.

Defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn has gotten as much out of a ragtag group of defenders as fans could ask for. Having Kerby Joseph, Brian Branch and Terrion Arnold in the defensive backfield is helping to keep a lid on things at least.

If the offense plays well, the Lions can squeeze out some tough wins in the final few weeks of the regular season and into the playoffs. But again, that doesn't get any easier without Montgomery.

Even still, if Hutchinson can suite up for the Super Bowl, there's no telling how effective he can be while coming off such a devastating injury. At least one thing is for certain: If Hutchinson is in the game, he's going 100%.

Detroit needs him to if this season has a chance at finishing how Lions fans have hoped and expected.