Last year, it was the defensive line. This year, it’s the secondary.
The Detroit Lions lost another starting defensive back to injury Thursday, Dec. 4, when Brian Branch hobbled off the field with an ankle injury in the fourth quarter of the Lions’ 44-30 win over the Dallas Cowboys and had to be carted to the locker room.
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Branch was in a walking boot and crutches after the game, and Lions coach Dan Campbell said he’d know more on the severity of Branch’s injury Friday.
Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch (32) jumps for a catch against the Dallas Cowboys during the second half at Ford Field in Detroit on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025.
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“I mean, yeah. He didn’t finish the game,” Campbell said when asked if he fears a long-term injury with Branch. “But there again, I’ll know more tomorrow.”
Branch was injured defending a pass to Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson in the end zone with just under 4 minutes to play. He spent several minutes on the ground being tended to by trainers, then walked gingerly to the sideline where a medical cart took him to the locker room.
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The Lions have hemorrhaged talent in their secondary this year and played Thursday without two starting defensive backs.
Pro Bowl safety Kerby Joseph has not played in more than two months because of a knee injury, but could return next week against the Los Angeles Rams, and second-year cornerback Terrion Arnold is out for the season with a shoulder injury.
Starting cornerback D.J. Reed also spent time on injured reserve this season with a hamstring injury and top backup Ennis Rakestraw suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in training camp.
The Lions also lost safety Thomas Harper to a brain injury on their second defensive snap Thursday. Harper has started the past seven games.
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Avonte Maddox and Daniel Thomas finished Thursday’s game at safety for the Lions.
“I don’t know what happened, I don’t know what’s going on, but BB’s a tremendous player, he’s a hard guy to replace,” cornerback Amik Robertson said. “But the way this team is built, I give the organization, GM, great props, man, because they built this team the right way. They built this team with a next-guy mentality, next-man up, so I think the guys that came in, they did a great job.”
Carlos Monarrez contributed to this report.
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Brian Branch injury update: Detroit Lions S in walking boot