Lions defensive tackle Alim McNeill honoring legacy of his jersey number

Munoz, David Rodriguez

Alim McNeill was the inspiration behind the new road design when the Detroit Lions unveiled their new uniforms last week. After reducing his body fat percentage and weight during the previous offseason, which contributed to his breakthrough campaign, he admitted what was evident when the Lions unveiled their new uniforms a year prior.

According to Will Burchfield of 97.1 The Ticket, he joked, “I wouldn’t have been able to get into it last year.” “I’m just glad they asked me to come.”

Last Thursday night, Chris Spielman—the team’s all-time leading tackler and current advisor—followed McNeill onto the stage while he was donning the new Lions road uniform. Spielman, like McNeill, wore No. 54 for the Lions, so that was definitely no coincidence.

As he approaches his fourth NFL season, McNeill—the 72nd overall pick in the 2021 draft—is a vital component of the Lions’ defence. Given the increasing size of defensive tackle contracts, another season similar to the previous one or even better is expected to make him a very wealthy man.

Alim McNeill inspired to preserve No. 54’s legacy for the Lions

In 1997, Spielman’s playing career came to an end after two seasons with the Buffalo Bills. After being drafted by the Lions, McNeill, who will turn 24 on May 11, acknowledged that he had not watched Spielman play and that he did not know much about the player.

Just months before the draft, owner Sheila Ford Hamp hired Spielman as a special assistant, and McNeill gained a lot of knowledge from discussing his career with the four-time Pro Bowler.

Given this and his knowledge of Spielman’s time spent in Detroit, McNeill is serious about playing with the number 54 for the Lions.

“I had just a little bit of knowledge at the time of it, but not much because I didn’t really watch that era of football,” McNeill said. However, after going back and researching him, I naturally looked it up, and now that I know everything there is to know, wearing it is undoubtedly an honour.

McNeill claimed that he constantly tells Spielman, “I’m just trying to match up to that standard,” in reference to donning the number 54. In additional remarks following the unveiling of the uniform, Spielman and the legendary Lions player’s all-around hands-on role within the organisation were specifically mentioned by Burchfield. Spielman is frequently spotted on the practice pitch, providing the coaching staff with an additional pair of eyes.

“I just told him right there, I appreciate the words he said for me on stage. I’m just trying to live up to that same name as Coach Spielman,” said McNeill. “He did a lot here, he did a lot in this number and it’s only right that I play my hardest and give everybody everything that they need to see out of that number.”

No. 54 will always be associated with Spielman in Lions’ history, but McNeill is hopefully just beginning to carve out his own legacy donning those digits.