Detroit Lions camp preview: Will Kerby Joseph be available and, if so, at what level?
Allen Park — A year ago, there was little argument that the Detroit Lions had the best safety tandem in the NFL.
Kerby Joseph was fresh off leading the league in interceptions and earning first-team All-Pro honors, which he parlayed into a massive contract extension.
Meanwhile, Brian Branch earned a Pro Bowl selection in 2024 and was higher regarded by the league’s coaches, scouts and decision-makers in an ESPN poll, ranking second at the position, behind only Baltimore’s Kyle Hamilton.
Both under the age of 25, it looked as if Detroit’s duo would dominate for years to come. But it didn’t take long to be reminded how quickly things change in the NFL.
In training camp, Joseph missed practice time with nagging knee pain. It took a turn for the worse when he fell hard on the knee during an interception return in Week 4. After two more games, he landed on the shelf and never returned with an issue that looks to be chronic.
Then Branch suffered a torn Achilles in December, which will likely sideline him until the middle of the upcoming season.
Not that there’s ever a good time to suffer that kind of injury, but there’s an added challenge to navigate with this being the final year of his rookie contract.
So instead of the stability we all expected last summer, there’s as much mystery with the short- and long-term outlook of Detroit’s safety situation as ever. Here’s how things stack up heading into training camp later this month.