Ezekiel “Ziggy” Ansah has proven to be a solid player thus far for the Detroit Lions. After being drafted No. 5 overall in 2013, Ansah has recorded 15.5 sacks, 81 combined tackles and five forced fumbles in two seasons in the Motor City. Those are impressive stats for a raw prospect who only had a few years of football under his belt coming out of college.

Although Ndamukong Suh is gone, the Lions still have impressive members of the defensive line with Ansah, Jason Jones, Haloti Ngata, Tyrunn Walker and several others. Perhaps 2015 is the year when Ansah emerges as a dominant player. In order to do so, he will need to step up and provide Detroit with a confident playmaker on the defensive line.

With Suh’s departure, many people believe Detroit’s defense will not be anywhere near as good as it was last season. Players on the Lions have a different opinion, though. In fact, Ngata was recently quoted as saying that he has “never been a part of a defense like this.” He cited Ansah, Jones and others as playmakers along the defensive line and said he’s “excited to be a part of it.” That is high praise from a guy who has played with Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs.

Of course, we will not know what this defense is truly capable of until Week 1, but Ansah is certainly a player to watch in 2015. Ansah played in all 16 games in 2014, while starting each one. He recorded 49 tackles, 7.5 sacks and three forced fumbles. As a rookie in 2013, he got to the quarterback eight times in 14 games (12 starts). There is a good chance that he can make his first Pro Bowl in 2015, as long as he continues to improve.

Ansah is a freak athlete. The Ghana-born player is 6-foot-5, 278 pounds and has quick feet. He has an unparalleled combination of size, strength, speed and extreme length. At age 26, Ansah has plenty of tread left on the tires and may be a force to be reckoned with for years to come. His potential has no ceiling and he will undoubtedly be giving offensive line coaches and offensive coordinators headaches in 2015.

It will be interesting to see if Ansah can make the leap into upper-echelon status in 2015. Entering his third season, and second season with defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, expect to see a lot of quarterbacks hitting the turf by way of the former BYU Cougar. Keep an eye out for Detroit’s defense in 2015; the unit will be better than anticipated.