What has been the biggest surprise of the Detroit Lions’ season thus far?
We’re only four weeks into the Detroit Lions ’ 2024 season, and it’s far too early to draw any sweeping conclusions about the team, the league, or any individual players. As many say, the first month of regular season football is essentially an extension of the preseason. Teams can—and probably will—look much different come December.
Still, we’ve gotten to know this Lions team pretty well over the last few years, and a lot of the core pieces of this franchise have been around for several seasons.
So today’s Question of the Day is:
What has been the biggest surprise from the Lions’ season thus far?
My answer: The fantastic safety play.
Don’t get me wrong, I liked the Lions’ lineup at safety, with Kerby Joseph, Ifeatu Melifonwu, and Brian Branch. But there were a lot of questions that needed to be answered early on. For one, Branch’s move to safety was a highly questionable move. While coaches insisted he’d get more opportunities to make plays at safety, it didn’t look great in training camp, and it was a hard sell considering how good he was at nickel last year.
Additionally, Branch and Joseph got very little time together in training camp due to injuries. Chemistry is so important to the safety position, and having to adjust defensively to offensive motion—while the Ford Field crowd is going nuts—is no easy task. But Joseph and Branch have been fantastic.
The injuries have only continued through the regular season. Melifonwu hasn’t played a single game and will miss at least the next three. Branch missed a game with an illness, and, yet, the Lions safety play has been stellar. Kerby Joseph looks like he’s taken a Year 3 jump, tallying three interceptions (second only to Xavier McKinney) while also being a force in the run game. Joseph’s 83.8 PFF grade is fifth among safeties, and Branch wouldn’t be far behind if he didn’t have such a rough season opener. He’s still 17th among safeties at 71.4.
It’s not so much that I’m surprised those individual players are playing well—we’ve seen both Joseph and Branch excel at the NFL level. I’m just surprised it all came together so quickly.
A big honorable mention goes to Levi Onwuzurike, for not only becoming a starter but turning into a force. He already has a half-sack in three of four games this season, a mind-blowing accomplishment since many of us had considered his career over.
What has been your biggest surprise from the Lions’ young season? Scroll to the comment section and let us know.