The Lions are dealing with a unique situation in their secondary this offseason. Fully healthy, Detroit would be home to one of the most formidable safety duos in the league, but both Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch have been dealing with serious injuries for some time now. On a more positive note, even with the usual starters out, the team is extremely deep at the position.
The latest reports see Branch almost certainly starting training camp on the active/physically unable to perform list, and some believe he may miss regular season time, as well. Joseph’s timeline for a return is still more uncertain. Per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press, the Lions held the All-Pro safety out of Organized Team Activities with the intention “to give his injured knee as much rest as possible before next season,” but head coach Dan Campbell still wasn’t sure what to expect for fall contributions from Joseph as they continue to work together to get him back on the field.
For as long as Joseph is out, it’s been determined that free agent addition Christian Izien will fill his deep safety role on the defense. Starting his career in Tampa Bay, Izien played almost exclusively in the slot as a rookie before splitting his time between nickel and at safety in Year 2, with a slight preference to the safety spot. Injuries limited his playing time last year, but his snap share looked to be on the same pace in 2025, had he been healthy.
While Branch, too, remains on the sideline, the Lions have determined that veteran strong safety Chuck Clark will fill in next to Izien on the first-team defense. Clark, 31, had a resurgent season with the Steelers last year following a rough couple of years with the Jets. A former sixth-round pick for the Ravens, Clark didn’t step into a full-time starting role until his third year in the league, and he held the starting spot for three more years before leaving Baltimore in exchange for a seventh-round pick. Clark tore his ACL in OTAs and sat out his first year with the Jets then returned the next season to start a subpar 12 games before suffering a torn pectoral muscle.
Clark spent most of last year coming off the bench for Pittsburgh but shined in his limited role. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded him the 16th-best safety in the league last year, out of 91 players graded at the position. It says a lot that Izien and Clark have been frequenting the first-team defense so far, considering their competition. Last year, it was Thomas Harper filling in for Joseph and Avonte Maddox eventually filling in for Branch. For their contributions, PFF graded them the 11th- and eight-best safeties last year, respectively.
Lions safeties coach Jim O’Neil suggested Izien and Clark may not want to get too comfortable. With this much talent in the group, O’Neil expects to see “an all-out battle” for playing time come training camp. He went as far as to suggest that a different combination of safeties could man the first-team secondary every day of camp for the first two weeks.
Of course, regardless of whoever wins out this fall, O’Neil made sure to clarify, “If Kerby or Brian Branch is healthy enough to practice, those are our starting safeties.” In the meantime, Izien — who didn’t play enough last year to warrant a PFF ranking — and the 16th-best safety, per PFF, will try to hold off the eighth- and 11th-best safeties for playing time on the first-team defense.
This content was brought to you by: Pro Football Rumors
