The Lions are not easing Brian Branch back into the mix with a hard snap limit, even if his first game in nearly 11 months comes after a brutal Achilles rehab.
Defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard said Thursday in Allen Park that there has been no firm workload plan for Branch as the Pro Bowl safety prepares to come off the physically unable to perform list ahead of this weekend’s NFC North matchup with the Green Bay Packers.
“We haven’t given like a rep count or anything like that,” Sheppard said Thursday, Oct. 22, in Allen Park. “It’s going to be more of a feel thing as the game goes and we’ll pick and choose what’s right and what’s not.”
Branch has been out since tearing the Achilles tendon in his right leg in a win over the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 4. Lions coach Dan Campbell said this week it would “be asking a lot” for Branch to handle a full workload right away, but Sheppard made it clear the team still expects him to matter immediately.
“Whenever you can gain a player like BB and his caliber back, it’s outstanding,” Sheppard said. “I’m not big on giving you projections and, 'Oh, he’s going to do this, he’s going to do that.'
It’s just beautiful to have BB back. There’s multiple things obviously that player can do to help us and we’ll find the spots that we feel is right and he feels right for him as we progress here.”
That boost matters for a Lions defense that has been leaking yards all season. Detroit is 3-2, but it ranks last in the NFL in pass defense at 297.4 yards allowed per game and 30th in points allowed at 29.8 per game. The timing is no accident, either: Green Bay brings the league’s most explosive passing attack, one that already has eight plays of 40 yards or more.
Branch isn’t the only big-name return setting up Sunday. Sheppard said the Packers are dealing with their own excitement over Josh Jacobs, who is expected back in the lineup after spending the first six games on the commissioner’s exempt list.
“Everybody’s just looking at the run game, it’s going to open up everything, it’s going to boost everything,” Sheppard said. “So it’s just a matter for them just like us, how much will he do?
But we’re prepared to play the player. We’ve played him previous, not only Green Bay, when he was in Vegas.
Have the utmost respect for that player, Josh Jacobs. I think he’s one of the top-end guys in this league and like I said, I believe we’ll be prepared for the challenge.”
Jacobs brings a heavy résumé with him. He has 2,258 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns over the last two seasons, and Green Bay could use the lift: the Packers are last in the league in rushing at 59.8 yards per game. He also has a strong track record against Detroit, going for 83 yards and 66 yards in wins over the Lions last season and averaging 81.8 rushing yards in six career games against them.
The Lions also made a move on special teams this week, signing DeAndre Carter to the practice squad and setting him up to replace Tom Kennedy as the team’s primary kick and punt returner. Kennedy is out for the season after knee surgery.
Special teams coordinator Dave Fipp said he has known Carter’s game for years and was part of the Eagles staff that helped him get his break in 2018. Carter had spent three seasons bouncing around the league and had been on four rosters before Philadelphia signed him to fill in for the injured Darren Sproles.
“We were playing against Tennessee and he did what he does,” Fipp said. “He catches the ball, he competes, he gets downhill, he's quick.
Very competitive. I mean, his story is the ultimate story of just overcoming all the obstacles, and he plays the game that way.
He loves playing football.”
Carter has averaged 9.7 yards per punt return and 23.6 yards per kick return in his career, and Fipp said the Lions’ personnel department had him on the radar before the team brought him in for a workout.
“I've always respected his game,” Fipp said. “I actually didn't even bring him up.
Our pro personnel guys had him on the list of a couple guys that we looked at and worked out. I know a lot about him and I think he’ll do a great job for us.”
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