Ahmed Hassanein was reportedly one of the standouts from the Detroit Lions’ training camp, and his preseason performance against the Cincinnati Bengals proved the hype was not a fluke. While Dan Campbell rested Jared Goff and other starters for the game, the Bengals played with some of their starters, including the franchise quarterback Joe Burrow, whom Hassanein sacked, making it his biggest and most emotional career moment.
The 24-year-old had a celebration planned, but it was overshadowed by his raw emotions, leaving him briefly breaking down on the field. Following the game, the edge rusher opened up about the teary-eyed moment of taking down one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL.
“I feel like, in the middle of that moment when I got the sack, I cried,” said Hassanein while talking to the reporters. “I didn’t know what to do, man. I literally broke down, but I had to go back on defense. I literally couldn’t believe it, but at the same time I did because I saw it happening.”
He put up impressive numbers with a total of 4 tackles, 2 sacks, 3 quarterback hits, and 1 forced fumble. Besides Burrow, Hassanein also sacked the veteran backup QB Josh Johnson. Sacking Burrow was a career-defining moment for him, but he reportedly envisioned it before Thursday night.
Hassanein Predicted His Joe Burrow Sack
Hassanein openly talked about his goal of sacking Burrow leading up to the game. As he knew he would be featuring in the first preseason game, he told his wife about the big goal. As a matter of fact, it also reached the ears of Dan Campbell, with the coach saying on Thursday morning that he sees the edge rusher sacking the Bengals star.
In the post-game interview, Hassanein stated that he saw the moment coming during the game.
“I kept saying it all week. I kept saying it to my wife,” the Lions star said. “Coach Campbell even said it in a team meeting today. He was like, ‘I see Ahmed sacking Joe Burrow.’ And I kept saying, ‘I’m going to sack Joe Burrow. I’m going to sack Joe Burrow.”
It happened in the first quarter on the opening possession for the Bengals. On the other hand, Hassanein came from the bench as a reserve rotational player, and he recorded the sack in his very first defensive snap.
Given the momentum he has built, he will be aiming to lock a place in the Lions’ 53-man squad before the regular season.
Hassanein Has Something to Prove in Detroit
2025 was the rookie year of Hassanein, but he was waived before the regular season. This season, he is a much-improved player. While addressing the reporters, last year’s sixth-round pick revealed what he wants to accomplish in Detroit.
“I know I can do this, and I wanna prove it. I wanna prove it to everybody, and I wanna have the opportunity to provide for my family, man,” Hassanein further added. “There’s no better feeling than playing for this team, because this team means so much to me. I love the Detroit Lions. I love Coach Campbell. I even told him I loved him before the game, and he said, ‘I love you!”
The Lions will play two more games against the Washington Commanders and Indianapolis Colts. If the edge rusher delivers again, he could end up being a reliable rotational player from Week 1.
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