Tim Twentyman

When a player or a coach in this league thinks they've gotten to a point where they've figured it all out, it's usually to the point when they start to get in trouble and find themselves actually behind the curve.

New Detroit Lions run game coordinator and defensive line coach Kacy Rodgers jumped at the opportunity to coach in Detroit under Dan Campbell this offseason in an attempt to take on a new challenge and sharpen his skill set.

"Sometimes as a coach you have to move to keep your skills sharp," Rodgers said. "Had a great experience (in Tampa Bay), but the opportunity presented itself to come here and the familiarity with Dan and Shep (DC Kelvin Sheppard) and Shea (Townsend) and (David) Corrao and we're talking about a pretty talented team too so, it's a really great opportunity."

Rodgers spent the previous six seasons with the Buccaneers, serving as the run game coordinator/defensive line coach (2022-24) and defensive line coach (2019-21). Prior to his tenure in Tampa Bay, Rodgers served as the defensive coordinator for the New York Jets from 2015-18 and the defensive line coach for the Miami Dolphins from 2008-14. He also served as the defensive line coach (2005-07) and defensive tackles coach (2003-04) for the Dallas Cowboys.

That's a lot of experience, and Rodgers is widely considered one of the best defensive line coaches in the game, along with Terrell Williams, who was Detroit's defensive line coach last year but left this offseason to be the defensive coordinator in New England.

While in Tampa Bay, Rodgers helped the Buccaneers win Super Bowl LV and capture five NFC South championships. Tampa Bay allowed the fewest rushing yards and lowest rushing average in the NFL while allowing the third-fewest rushing touchdowns in his time there. The Buccaneers also had the most forced fumbles and second-most sacks in the NFL during that span.

In Detroit, Rodgers inherits a good mix of veteran and young talent upfront, and that's something he said also made him gravitate to Detroit and this opportunity. Now, it's up to Rodgers to get the most out of the unit. When healthy, it has a chance to be a dominant, attacking front led byAidan Hutchinson,Marcus Davenport,Alim McNeill,DJ Reader,Levi Onwuzurike, Tyleik Williams and others.

There's a lot of versatility in that room, and Rodgers said that might be its greatest asset overall when it comes to how it fits into the vision and scheme of Sheppard's defense.

"We need a lot of versatility because we want to try to be as disruptive as we can be upfront. Be able to slug it out when we need to slug it out, shake and bake when we need to shake and bakewe have to be able to do it all," Rodgers said.

Detroit was top five in the NFL last year stopping the run. It's expected to be a much better pass-rush unit with Hutchinson and Davenport healthy and with some of the other additions they've added upfront. Even without Hutchinson and Davenport, the Lions were No. 2 in the NFL in total pressures (345) in 2024.

It's a unit that has a lot of potential and has one of the best in the business with a proven track record of getting the most out of his units now leading them. That should have a lot of people in Detroit excited about what that could mean for the Lions' defense as a whole.