The Detroit Lions suffered a major blow to their playoff hopes Thursday night, as standout safety Brian Branch tore his Achilles during the team’s 44–30 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night. An MRI result confirmed the injury on Friday, according to multiple reports, and the third-year defensive back is expected to miss the remainder of the season.
Branch, 24, played through visible discomfort earlier in the game and remained on the field until a red-zone stop in the fourth quarter, where he went down and required assistance to the sideline. He was later carted to the locker room and left the stadium on crutches and in a walking boot. Head coach Dan Campbell offered no immediate details afterward, but Friday’s diagnosis confirmed the Lions’ fears.
Before exiting, Branch logged six tackles while playing 68 of 76 defensive snaps, continuing the high-level production he has delivered all season. He ranks third on the team in tackles (75), second in passes defensed (9), and fifth in sacks (2.5), anchoring a secondary that has been hit hard by injuries. A 2024 Pro Bowler and one of the league’s most versatile young defenders, Branch has lined up everywhere; slot, deep safety and in the box, since being drafted in the second round in 2023.
His loss leaves Detroit dangerously thin on the back end. Starting safety Kerby Joseph has been out since Oct. 12 with a knee injury, and first-year corner Terrion Arnold was lost for the season due to shoulder surgery. Against Dallas, Detroit briefly fell to its fourth- and fifth-string safeties when Thomas Harper exited with a concussion, forcing Avonte Maddox and Daniel Thomas to close the game.
Branch’s absence now forces defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to rethink both personnel and scheme. Without their top space tackler and most flexible coverage piece, the Lions may have to simplify their disguises, rely more heavily on man coverage and generate quicker pressure to protect a depleted secondary.
At 8–5, Detroit sits just outside the NFC playoff field but remains firmly in contention for a third consecutive postseason berth. The Lions do have a 10-day window before their next game, a crucial matchup with the Los Angeles Rams, but they’ll now navigate that stretch without one of their defensive cornerstones.
It’s a significant setback for a team that opened the season eyeing a deep playoff run, but not necessarily a fatal one, as Detroit scrambles to reconfigure its defense for the final month.
