Breaking News: Lions’ Big Interior Defensive Line Pat O’Connor Has Re-signed Ahead Of the 2025 Season Following… Read more
Pat O’Connor, whom the team added during the summer prior to last season, has re-signed with the team ahead of the 2025 season. O’Connor was a big part of the team’s interior defensive line rotation last season, as injuries necessitated him having an increased role.
O’Connor did not make the team initially out of training camp, but remained with the team on the practice squad. By midseason, he was on the active roster and contributing on the defensive line.
The Eastern Michigan product was originally drafted by the Lions in the seventh round of the 2017 NFL Draft. However, he did not make the team, and eventually landed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
O’Connor played his way into a role with Tampa Bay, spending six seasons with the team, including the 2020 campaign in which the team won the Super Bowl.
In his career, O’Connor has appeared in 80 games. He played in 12 games last year for Detroit, totaling 18 combined tackles, two tackles for loss, and a sack. The Eastern Michigan product had 10 pressures and a 55.3 pass-rush grade per Pro Football Focus.
Unfortunately, O’Connor’s season came to an end after he suffered a calf injury in the regular season finale, and he was deemed inactive for the team’s playoff loss to the Washington Commanders.
The Lions also re-signed Levi Onwuzurike last week as part of the initial wave of free agency. A 2021 second-round pick, Onwuzurike returns to Detroit on a one-year, $5.5 million contract.
