This week’s mandatory minicamp at the Detroit Lions training facility in Allen Park is the only time between the end of the season and the start of training camp when all the Lions players will be required to be in attendance. Several of those players are recovering from injuries and won’t be able to participate, however.
Two of those are starting safeties, Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch. Both are in the process of rehabilitating from off-season leg surgeries and their absence in the secondary was particularly noticeable during the recent OTA sessions.
Joseph is the team’s top coverage safety, largely responsible for the single-high looks and deep-field roaming. Branch was outstanding as the Lions’ slot DB as a rookie, and he does pull some duty as a free safety in some packages, too. Without them in the lineup, the coverage issues with the rest of the safety room were starkly evident in last week’s practice.
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Ifeatu Melifonwu is an effective starter as a box safety, but range and anticipation in coverage are not where he wins. He’s more of an attack dog, at his best blitzing and aggressively playing the run and routes in front of him. The arrow is pointing up for Melifonwu, but his limitations in man coverage and more split-safety looks were exacerbated without Branch and Kerby Joseph playing with him.
Brandon Joseph, a 2023 UDFA from Notre Dame, was the other starter with Melifownu last week. Known for his coverage ability in college, Joseph is one of a few young safeties who could seize opportunities in minicamp with the injuries above them on the depth chart.
For Joseph and 2024 undrafted rookies Chelen Garnes and Loren Strickland, there will be considerable reps to show what they can do. Veteran CJ Moore is back after missing 2023 due to a gambling suspension, and he’ll also have chances to prove he can be more than just a special teams asset–his primary role in his first tour of duty in Detroit.
It’s the thinnest position on the roster–on paper, anyway. Garnes, Joseph and Strickland could help ameliorate some serious depth concerns at safety for the Lions. Garnes, from Wake Forest, is more in the Melifonwu mold, a strong tackler with a powerful build and good closing burst to the ball carrier in the run game. He was the second-team safety behind Melifonwu during last week’s practice that was open to the media.
Strickland was the same sort of player during his college career at Ball State. It can be difficult for those types of players to make a positive impact in practices where tackling and hitting aren’t permitted. Even so, the opportunity and minicamp reps are there for someone to step up and seize a bigger role in the Lions defense.