Over the past month, the Detroit Lions defense has a ton of new faces. The team’s pro personnel department has been working overtime to ensure the Lions can weather the injury storm on defense, and they’ve done an amazing job. Despite losing nearly half of their starters to injury—and a handful of depth players, too—the Lions remain on an 11-game winning streak and their defense is playing admirably.

But let’s look beyond this year. Guys like Al-Quadin Muhammad, Pat O’Connor, and Ezekiel Turner have played well as replacements. Have any of them played well enough to warrant consideration for a long-term spot with the Lions? That’s one of the questions myself and Erik Schlitt tackle on this week’s Midweek Mailbag podcast. Here’s a tidbit of that conversation.

“The one who stands out the most has been Muhammad,” Schlitt said. “Muhammad has been sensational. He really has. He’s really found his groove. He’s been with the team almost two months now, and he’s found his rhythm, he’s found his role, he fits the scheme really well, and he’s playing at a high level. Even when you bring back (Josh) Paschal and (Levi) Onwuzurike), Muhammad still sticks, I think, as EDGE four and plays an important part in the rotation.”

“Turner was going to be my answer,” I responded. “It’s the special teams ability. If he goes into 2025 as the Lions’ linebacker six or seven, there’s still a role for him. The Lions have showed that in the past. But, obviously, there’s going to be a lot of competition there. We’ll see what they do with Derrick Barnes—he’s going to be a free agent—and I believe Jalen Reeves-Maybin is still under contract for one more year, so there’s going to be heavy competition there, and I think he’s done everything he possibly could to earn a contract next year.”

Of course, it certainly helps your case when positional coach Kelvin Sheppard publicly vouches for you, like when he said this about Turner this week.

“I learned that he’s not a special teams linebacker, and I want that said to the entire league,” Sheppard said.

That conversation starts around the 21:15 mark in this week’s episode.

Other topics on this week’s show include:

• 4:50 — Why is Dan Campbell getting attacked for a strategy that worked?
• 10:40 — Are the Lions a little too conservative on third down on offense?
• 15:20 — How concerning is the future of the Lions’ offensive line with a currently-aging group?
• 29:00 — Are people overlooking the difficulty of the final three games (@ Bears, @ 49ers, vs. Vikings)?
• 35:10 — What would be more surprising down the stretch: 4-0 or 2-2?
• 41:20 — What does the Lions’ starting 11 players on defense look like in the playoffs?
• 51:15 — Which team would you like the Lions to face in a theoretical Super Bowl?

You can listen to the entire show in the Spotify player below. Or you can watch a replay of it on YouTube and Twitch