Lions safety/nickelback hybrid who made first-team All-Pro in 2024 and is the most versatile DB in the NFC North.
Brian Branch plays the modern hybrid safety/slot role better than almost anyone. The 2024 first-team All-Pro nod and 2025 Pro Bowl confirm Detroit hit a home run with the 45th pick in 2023. Branch led the Lions' Wild Card secondary in tackles in 2025 and is signed through 2028 on his extension.
Path to the league
Alabama product taken 45th overall by Detroit in 2023. Made the All-Rookie team. Took over Detroit's nickel/slot role from Day 1 and never gave it back.
Career highlights
2024 First-team All-Pro. 2x Pro Bowl (2024, 2025). 2023 All-Rookie team. Highest career coverage grade among slot defenders (PFF). $48M extension (2025).
2025 season recap
3 INTs, 85 tackles, 12 pass breakups, 2 forced fumbles. Detroit went 14-3 and lost the NFC Championship to the Rams. Branch's coverage on slot receivers held opposing slot WRs to under 1.4 yards per route run, leading the league.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Brian Branch
- Pro Football Reference: Brian Branch
Statistics
2025 season and career2025 Season · Defense
12 games played▶Defense · career
| Year | Team | GP | TOT | SOLO | SACK | INT | FF | FR | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | lions | 2 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2025 | lions | 12 | 75 | 48 | 2.5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| 2024 | lions | 16 | 109 | 79 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 16 |
| 2023 | lions | 15 | 74 | 50 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 13 |
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Safety
- Group
- defense
- College
- Alabama
- Hometown
- Fayetteville, GA, USA
- Age
- 25
- Status
- active
Latest news about Brian Branch
All news →Jahmyr Gibbs Passes Barry Sanders for Most NFL Touchdowns Before Age 25
Gibbs' second touchdown in a 45-21 win at Arizona was his 58th, one more than Sanders had before turning 25. He has nine touchdowns in five games and says he is chasing LaDainian Tomlinson's single-season record.
Lions' Avonte Maddox Leaves on Crutches With Foot Injury as Secondary Problems Grow
Maddox collided with teammate Chuck Clark in the end zone in the second quarter at Buffalo. Detroit is already without safeties Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph and has allowed 30-plus points in both games.
Lions' Jahmyr Gibbs Continues Hold-In as Extension Talks Play Out
Gibbs has now missed five straight practices and says 'only time will tell' when he returns, even as Dan Campbell insists he's 'not even sweating it.'
Sam LaPorta Fully Cleared for Lions Training Camp After Back Surgery
Detroit's top tight end has been given the green light following a microdiscectomy, a timely boost for an offense that has absorbed plenty of bad news this offseason.
Dan Campbell Says Brian Branch Is "Doing Well" but Won't Set a Return Date
The Lions coach reports no setbacks in Brian Branch's recovery from a torn Achilles, yet he is bracing the fan base for a December timeline rather than promising an early comeback.
Lions extend Jack Campbell on a four-year, $76 million deal
The 2023 first-round linebacker becomes the latest Detroit homegrown core piece locked up through the end of the decade.
