Allen Park — Kerby Joseph has nowhere to go but up.
At least in his own mind. And for anyone who watched the second-year Lions safety in his rookie year, in which he sealed a season-ending win over the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field, it might be clear Joseph has potential to become a true star in the 2023 season.
But if you want to know about his goals for this year, well, too bad. He doesn’t have any.
“I just keep balling. That’s it. I don’t give myself no goals, because I feel like those goals would limit my ability. Like I wouldn’t say I’m going to go and get five picks, because I’ll only get five picks,” Joseph said.
It’s an unusual mindset, for sure. But if there’s anybody this could work for, it’s Joseph. He’s a player that meshes serious physical traits with a killer instinct, which he put on display in a rookie season that saw him intercept four passes — including three from former Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers — force two fumbles, recover one and make 82 tackles in 14 starts.
Joseph’s entire game lives and dies with his understanding of the scheme he plays in and the players he plays with.
“I feel like last year when I came in, I didn’t know the playbook really (well). But it’s to a point where now I know the playbook so good, where I can move around and I know what my partner, teammate is doing next to me, so I can incorporate what he’s doing into my play and allow me to make more plays or allow him to make plays,” Joseph said.
If there is one area he’s focused in on outside the playbook, it’s his senses — sight and sound, mostly.
“I like to trust my eyes, trust my abilities,” Joseph said. “I use sight and I also use hearing (to defend passes). I can hear receivers running around me and I’ll be able to feel them, their presence.”
This offseason, the Lions completely overhauled their defensive backfield. At safety, they added C.J. Gardner-Johnson through free agency and Brian Branch with a second-round pick. At corner, Detroit signed Cam Sutton and Emmanuel Moseley. While Moseley has yet to see the practice field, the impact of the new-look secondary has been immediately felt.
And with all of the new pieces being quite versatile, there’s no telling what Joseph might be asked to do this upcoming season. He does have one goal: To not leave the field.
“Like (defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn) says, he wants us to be more versatile today. I want to be everywhere. I don’t want to come off the field,” Joseph said. “If I have to go back in the post and play the post, I’ll play in the post. If I have to go on an island and out there on the sidelines playing corner, you could put me out there.”
One more thing of note for the locals: Joseph tried his first Vernors over the weekend.
“It was all right,” he said. “It was pretty good.”
Injury update
The Lions received a positive injury update on wide receiver Trinity Benson, who was carted off the practice field Wednesday after appearing to suffer a significant leg injury during a seven-on-seven portion. Though it looked like it had potential to be a season-ender, coach Dan Campbell said the initial outlook “sounds promising.”
“We (are) getting a second opinion on it, but I think we dodged one there. Looks like it could just be a sprain,” Campbell said. “He’ll be out probably a good week or so, but it’s good news. It’s great news.”
Benson, 26, played eight games for the Lions in 2021 and just one game in 2022 with a stint on the Denver Broncos practice squad in between. He suffered a season-ending knee injury in his Lions debut last season at Chicago and was placed on IR.
nbianchi@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @nolanbianchi