The Lions have ruled DB Brian Branch (ankle) out for Sunday's game against the Panthers. They might get S Kerby Joseph (hip) and CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee, hamstring) back. Both are officially questionable but finished the practice week with full participation Friday.
The Lions didn't practice Wednesday but listed DB Brian Branch as a non-participant in their estimated injury report. That doesn't bode well for his Week 5 status. It's been nearly a week since Branch left the Thursday night win at Green Bay with an ankle sprain. We'll see about his status heading into the weekend, but plan on starting someone else in that slot of your IDP lineup. S Kerby Joseph (hip) was listed as limited. He's a candidate to return after missing the past two games.
Lions S Kerby Joseph (hip) and CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee, hamstring) are inactive for tonight's game against the Packers. Joseph's absence -- for the second straight week -- should mean more playing time for rookie Brian Branch once again. He went from 68% and 69% snap shares the first two games to playing every snap last week. That helped Branch rack up 11 solo tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 2 passes defensed in the win over the Falcons. He has moved up our Week 4 DB rankings.
Lions S Kerby Joseph (hip) and CB Emmanuel Moseley (knee, hamstring) are questionable for Thursday night's game against the Packers. Joseph missed last Sunday's game after sitting out the whole practice week. He returned to limited workouts this week but remains a question mark and is probably not worth the risk in IDP lineups. Moseley has yet to play in a game this year and didn't get any live practices in this short week. He shouldn't be in IDP lineups yet but sported some upside when he started with the 49ers.
The Lions fear S C.J. Gardner-Johnson tore a pectoral muscle in Sunday's loss to the Seahawks, NFL Network reports. If confirmed, that would knock Gardner-Johnson out for at least a while -- and likely the rest of the season. We'll watch for confirmation.
Tim Twentyman of the team website lists Lions rookie DB Brian Branch as a player who has "stood out" early in training camp. Branch, a second-round pick, has been working in with the first team. He saw time in CB and safety roles at Alabama before dropping to Round 2 after running slow at the Scouting Combine. Detroit presents opportunity for Branch to earn a regular-season role in either position group. We'll keep watching for more specifics on what role he might fill. We've gone ahead and added him to the IDP rankings, though.
Lions DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson was carted off the practice field Monday morning after suffering a non-contact knee injury, according to multiple reports. We'll await an official diagnosis, but this obviously sounds pretty serious. A healthy Gardner-Johnson would be a candidate for both the primary slot CB role and some safety work. We'll see about Detroit's defensive plans going forward.
Update: NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that the injury doesn't appear to be serious, according to team sources.
The Lions spent the 18th overall pick of the NFL Draft on LB Jack Campbell. The former Iowa LB delivered strong tackle numbers across four seasons, including leading FBS in that category in 2021. He also defensed 15 passes over the past three years. Campbell closed his Hawkeyes career by earning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the Butkus Award (nation's top LB) in 2022. He followed that with an 80th-percentile speed score and 9.98 relative athletic score (out of 10). That's the sixth best among 2,600 LB prospects since 1987. We'll see about Campbell's immediate fit in Detroit, which re-signed LB Alex Anzalone in free agency. But Campbell clearly fits squarely into the Lions' defensive plans going forward. He sat No. 2 in our IDP rookie rankings heading into the draft.
The Lions are bringing LB Alex Anzalone back on a three-year, $18.75 million deal, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. That's particularly noteworthy money for Anzalone, who played each of the past two seasons for Detroit on one-year pacts. He got just $1.75 million in 2021 and then $2.5 million last year. But Anzalone increased his playing time each season vs. what he got across four seasons in New Orleans. That included playing 95.1% of the snaps across 17 games last year. Anzalone also saw boosts in his Pro Football Focus grading across categories and cracked the top 30 LBs in fantasy points. Expect him to remain the Lions' best bet for full playing time at the position, heading into his age-29 season. There's still room for 2022 rookie Malcolm Rodriguez to grow his role, though, vs. where Rodriguez finished the season.
Lions S Kerby Joseph (back) and S DeShon Elliott (shoulder) sat out Wednesday's practice to open Week 17. Joseph played every snap of Saturday's loss at Carolina and seems like the better bet to rebound. Elliott missed Week 16 after leaving the previous game early and doesn't currently appear in our Week 17 IDP rankings. We'll keep an eye on the status of both safeties through the week.
The Lions have ruled S DeShon Elliott (shoulder) out or Saturday's game against the Panthers. C.J. Moore should start in Elliott's place. He filled in when Elliott left last week's win over the Jets.
Lions S DeShon Elliott left Sunday's win over the Jets with a dislocated shoulder. HC Dan Campbell told reporters Monday that the team is awaiting results from testing on the joint. We'll see whether Elliott is available for this Saturday's game at Carolina.
Lions EDGE Aidan Hutchinson (illness) is active for today's game against the Jets. Use him as planned in your IDP lineups.
Lions EDGE Aidan Hutchinson (illness) is questionable for Sunday’s game against the Jets. He missed Thursday’s practice but returned for a limited Friday. We’d bet on Hutchinson playing but will obviously watch for confirmation
Lions CB Jeff Okudah (illness) is active for today's game against the Vikings. Use him as planned in IDP lineups.
Lions CB Jeff Okudah is questionable for Sunday's game against the Vikings. He missed Wednesday and Thursday with an illness this week before putting in a limited Friday workout. Okudah played a key role in Detroit limiting Vikings WR Justin Jefferson in their 1st meeting this season. His presence Sunday shouldn't affect whether you're playing Jefferson in fantasy football lineups, but Okudah matters for the quality of Detroit's defense overall. He also could be in for plenty of opportunities for IDP upside, if active.
Lions S DeShon Elliott (concussion) and LB Malcolm Rodriguez (elbow) are active for today's game against the Giants. Rodriguez put in full practices all week but still entered the day questionable, indicating that his elbow is not all the way back. He missed last week's game with the injury after playing just 26% in the game where he hurt it (but returned). Rodriguez looks too risky for most IDP lineups. Elliott should be OK to use at normal levels.
Lions S Kerby Joseph (concussion) is active for today's game against the Bears. That matches what coaches said they expected. LB Malcolm Rodriguez (elbow) is inactive.
Lions S Kerby Joseph (concussion) is officially questionable for Sunday's game against the Bears. HC Dan Campbell said Friday, though, that he's "good to go." LB Malcolm Rodriguez (elbow) is also questionable. He returned to last week's game after sustaining the injury but played limited snaps. Rodriguez will be a high-risk play in IDP lineups this week.
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