The Lions have announced that starting safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph will both open training camp on the physically unable to perform list. Branch is working back from the Achilles' tear that ended his 2025 season in early December. Joseph missed 11 games last year while dealing with a nagging knee injury. He's apparently not over it yet.
What They're Saying
Erik Schlitt of Pride of Detroit, on Joseph: "His lingering knee problems are not something that can be fixed by surgery and instead will need to be managed by him and the team throughout the season. In addition to allowing the knee to rest and recover this offseason, Joseph has worked with the team through a variety of different rehabilitation/treatment efforts, with the overarching plan being "not push this until we absolutely have to."
Schlitt on Branch: "Coach Dan Campbell said it's still unclear if Branch will [go on the regular-season PUP] and declined to put a timetable on his return ... but he did also note that there have been 'no setbacks' and that Branch is 'putting in the work' to be ready as soon as possible."
2026 Fantasy Football Impact
Branch ranks among the top fantasy DB bets when healthy, but this injury makes him a high-risk option for 2026. We'll keep watch, but Branch seems like a strong candidate for the regular-season PUP. That would cost him at least the first four games.
Joseph will just require tracking. That update from Schlitt indicates both that the initial readiness date is not yet clear and that the knee trouble figures to linger throughout the season.
You'll find Joseph out of range for nearly all redraft formats this season in our DB rankings. I have also knocked the first four games off Branch's 2026 projection.
Detroit has a committee working to claim fill-in spots while the starters are out. We'll see who's in place heading into Week 1, but there's no one worth getting excited about here.
