Lions DT Levi Onwuzurike out for entire 2025 season with ACL injury, surgery
The Lions' 2024 defensive line injury woes have held over into 2025, with Dan Campbell confirming Detroit will be without defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike for the entire upcoming season after offseason surgery on an ACL injury.
Onwuzurike – who signed a one-year deal coming into the season after an impressive 2024 following a back injury that required spinal fusion surgery in Oct. 2022 – was placed on the reserve/PUP list on Thursday. Though Onwuzurike played in 2023, his role was limited.
"Levi surgery was – it was significant but it needed to be done," Campbell said Sunday, per the Detroit Free Press. "Out of his control and it needed to be done, so he will miss the season."
"You don't like to lose anybody," Campbell said, per ESPN. "Certainly, losing Levi, that hurts, but it helps that we've got Tyleik (Williams), so we've got a little bit of balance here."
According to Campbell, Onwuzurike got the knee surgery earlier in the offseason.
Onwuzurike joined fellow defensive tackle Alim McNeill on the reserve/PUP list when he was placed on it, as McNeill continues to recover from a Dec. 15 ACL tear suffered against the Bills last season. The aforementioned Tyleik Williams, the 28th overall pick in this year's NFL draft out of Ohio State, recorded 46 tackles (eight for loss) and 2.5 sacks in last year's championship season for the Buckeyes.