"That leg is fried," "It might be over" - NFL fans react to Lions DE Aidan Hutchinson's viral injury rehab video

Aidan Hutchinson's injury was a significant blight on an otherwise excellent Detroit Lions 2024 regular season. He suffered a broken left leg that ruled him out for the rest of the year, in which Detroit finished with the NFC top seed. However, his loss was most keenly felt in the one-and-done playoff loss to the Commanders at home in the Divisional Round, and fans have been eagerly awaiting his return.

Once the video of his comeback efforts dropped, though, supporters were not so sure. It showed the defensive star doing a lot of drills on the turf and also working in the gym. In all the videos, he is seen wearing protection on his left leg, and his natural explosiveness does not look to be back completely.

Fans certainly think so, and they took to X/Twitter to air their thoughts. They lamented what they think might be a decline in his performances from how he was before the injury. Here are some of the reactions.

The posts kept coming, and what was noticeable is that even those who backed Aidan Hutchinson did not feel sanguine that he was going to come back to his previous level. Here are some more responses.

"My guy’s leg and explosion are cooked" - said one.

"Damn hate to see this. Looks like that leg injury was severe" - lamented another.

"Sorry but hes never gonna be the same... playing in a game is different than training" - commented a third.

Lions DE Aidan Hutchinson feels good coming back

While many are speculating about Aidan Hutchinson's recovery following the video the league put out, he has personally said that he was feeling good during his rehab. Saying that he is ready to knock it out of the park, he previously commented,

“I’m there. I’d say I’m good. I’ve got my last evaluation tests when I get back — I leave today and I go back tomorrow to the rehab — I’m gonna finish those evals and once I knock them out of the park, I’ll be on my way and done with rehab. It was a long process, I’ll tell you that.”

What seems clear, though, is that it was always fanciful to set a target for him to return by the Super Bowl if the Lions made it there. Of course, that remains a moot point since Detroit never got close to lifting the Lombardi Trophy last season, something they will be looking to change this year.