Per NFL insider Ian Rapaport, the Detroit Lions have signed safety Damontae Kazee to their practice squad after Brian Branch was ruled out for the remainder of the season with a torn achilles tendon.
Kazee, 32, has played in 111 NFL games dating back to 2017, most recently this season with the Cleveland Browns . According to Rapaport, the Lions plan to elevate him to the active roster quickly as they’re in desperate need of someone to fill in for Branch.
Kazee was drafted back in 2017 by the Atlanta Falcons , who he played for through the 2020 season. Since then, he’s split time between Dallas, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland.
The best season of Kazee’s career came back in 2018 when he registered seven interceptions on 10 passes defended while making 82 tackles. He has 10 interceptions in the seven seasons he’s played in since 2018.
Kazee Signed Amidst Plethora of Injuries at Safety
The Lions have been without safety Kerby Joseph since week six as he’s dealt with a knee injury. With Branch going down for the season and Thomas Harper suffering a concussion, Kazee will more than likely be elevated to the active roster by week’s end.
Though he suited up for four games with the Browns this season, Kazee didn’t actually hit the field for Cleveland. Coupled with the fact that he only started one game with Pittsburgh during the 2024 season, it’s been a while since he’s played a significant amount of impactful NFL snaps.
Detroit will be working with him all week to get him up to speed with the playbook in the hopes that he can suit up this weekend when the Lions travel to Los Angeles to take on the Rams .
Kazee was a standout in his college career with San Diego State in the mid 2010’s. Hopefully for the Lions, that youthful energy arises once again for the 32-year-old who is looking to regain traction in his professional career.
Lions-Rams Highlights 4 p.m. Window in Week 15
The Lions will be fighting tooth-and-nail to get back into the playoff picture for the final four weeks of the season. They have a difficult schedule to finish the campaign, though the Rams will be the best team they face, with Pittsburgh, Minnesota, and Chicago coming down the barrel in the final three weeks.
A win against LA would go a long way towards elevating Detroit, both in the standings and in terms of momentum. Since starting the season 4-1, the Lions haven’t won two games in a row, trading wins and losses each week.
If that pattern continues, Detroit is in line for a loss after it defeated the Dallas Cowboys on TNF last week. This is a chance for the Lions to not only finally win two games in a row, but also for them to prove that they have what it takes against an all-around elite Rams team.
At 8-5, the Lions are 1.5 games back of the Packers for the NFC North lead, and one game back of Chicago for the seventh and final Wild Card berth. A win coupled with a Bears or San Francisco loss would elevate them into the playoff picture.
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