Hird says Lucas, who has kicked just four goals in six games this year, needs to remain at senior level if he is to shake off his slump.
"Scotty's got to play. He's the sort of guy that's got to play and play and play," he said, on Foxtel's On The Couch on Monday night.
"He's not a guy that handles the rotation. He's handling it well mentally but I think he's a guy that needs consistency in his game."
The 253-player said the Bombers simply cannot afford to drop Lucas given the injury crisis they have recently found themselves in.
"They've already lost [Dustin] Fletcher, they've lost [David] Hille, and [Mark] McVeigh and [Andrew] Welsh will be out for the next three or four weeks," he said.
"They need his experience. He is capable [of playing better football]. There have been a number of examples of guys who have played poorly and they come back.
Hird questioned the pre-season approach taken with Lucas by the club that saw the veteran concentrate on skills work.
"I was always taught as an older player that you've got to train smarter, but you've got to train harder, because if you don't train and you have a bad pre-season, you'll suffer during the season.
"That's to me what has happened.
"He's only ever been a metre in front and now he's half a metre in front and he's dropping marks he should take. His confidence is down, and he's the sort of guy who not an absolute track animal but he gets his game time, and once he gets his game time, he plays better."
Hird likened Lucas' situation to that of Port Adelaide forward Warren Tredrea, who shook off goalless performances in rounds one and two to kick 17 majors in the following four weeks, and predicted his former teammate had the ability to turn things around.
However, he warned the two-time club best and fairest that he needed to show improvement sooner rather than later.
"You can have a bad six weeks and turn it around. Just because you're 31 years old doesn't mean you're finished," he said.
"But if he has another six weeks like this, or another two or three, he won't get much more time than that."
