​Last year on Lions Wire, I argued that reducing Aidan Hutchinson’s snap counts could meaningfully lower his injury risk. Despite that stance, there was essentially no change in his snap count percentage from 2024 to 2025. Below is an updated analysis of Hutchinson’s defensive snap counts as we approach 2026, with data drawn from pro-football-reference.com and fantasypros.com.
A straightforward way to mitigate injury risk for a key player is to curb exposure by cutting down snap counts over the course of a season. Hutchinson has logged an exceptionally high workload for several seasons, making him a prime candidate for reduced exposure. His tibia/fibula fracture in 2024 was a fluky, non-accumulative injury—exactly the type of risk that reducing snap counts is designed to address.
Looking at Hutchinson’s defensive snap counts over the past two seasons and comparing him to other top edge rushers, we can see how his workload stacks up. Across the 2025 season, the average snap-count percentage per game sits around 94%, not including games missed due to injury, with Maxx Crosby posting 94% as well but missing the final two games due to meniscus-related surgery after a season where he logged 935 total snaps and 10 sacks. Hutchinson, by contrast, logged 1005 total snaps and 14.5 sacks in 2025, with a per-game average of around 82% (roughly 52–57 snaps per game, depending on the week). In contrast, TJ Watt recorded an 82% per-game rate with 7 sacks but missed three games due to a pneumothorax, Micah Parsons averaged about 77% due to a season-ending ACL injury with Meniscus damage in Week 15, and no other EDGE rusher surpassed Hutchinson in total defensive snaps for the 2025 season. The vast majority of leading sack leaders posted snap counts in the 60–80% range per game, and the new NFL sacks record holder, Myles Garrett, played about 82% of snaps.
As the 2025 season began, I again advocated lowering Hutchinson’s snap counts to improve his odds of a full, healthy season and a possible playoff run. The Lions did not adjust his snap deployment, but Hutchinson managed to stay healthy enough to contribute through the year. Beyond injury risk, there could be on-field benefits to being fresher on high-leverage plays—such as critical third- and fourth-down situations, or late in games—where a handful of fewer snaps per game could help preserve his explosiveness on key plays.
Moving forward, I continue to recommend reducing Hutchinson’s snaps into a 70–82% range—aligning him more closely with other elite edge rushers and balancing durability with peak performance. There is a plausible argument that a slightly lighter workload could yield greater overall sack numbers if it helps him sustain his effectiveness across the season and into the playoffs.
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