Lions Place Kerby Joseph, Brian Branch, FA Tight End on PUP List

The Detroit Lions are reporting to training camp.

After rookies reported on Saturday, the team's veterans are set to report to the facility on Tuesday marking the beginning of training camp for the 2026 NFL season. Ahead of the start of camp, the Lions have announced roster moves.

Detroit announced Sunday that a total of three players have been placed on the Physically Unable to Perform list. This includes safety Brian Branch, who will begin the season sidelined while rehabbing a torn Achilles that he suffered late last season.

Fellow safety Kerby Joseph was also placed on PUP to begin training camp, as was tight end Tyler Conklin.

Players placed on PUP at this stage can come off the list at any time. If a player was placed on Reserve/PUP, howver, then they would have to miss the first four regular season games.

Both Joseph and Branch were sidelined throughout the offseason workout period, with Branch rehabbing the Achilles and Joseph working back from a knee injury that cost him the final 11 games of the regular season.

Joseph had made a social media post Saturday indicating that he would be available at the start of training camp, however that notion was proven untrue with Sunday's announcement. Conklin, meanwhile, has been dealing with an undisclosed injury that he suffered during offseason workouts.

A timetable for Branch's return remains unclear, as the typical length of recovery from an Achilles injury would suggest that he could miss the start of the regular season. During offseason workouts, Lions head coach Dan Campbell quipped that he would return by December.

With Branch and Joseph set to begin training camp sidelined, the Lions could evaluate Chuck Clark and Christian Izien among the possible replacements for him. Those two players were both signed as free agents in the offseason, and they had worked with the first-team defense throughout offseason workouts.

Other options on the Lions' roster include Avonte Maddox, Thomas Harper, Dan Jackson and Loren Strickland.

Branch is one of the key parts of the Lions' defense, as he has displayed elite levels of versatility within their scheme. As a rookie in 2023, he was the team's primary nickel cornerback. He would then move to safety full-time in 2024, and had a big sophomore campaign.

In his three-year career, Branch has recorded seven interceptions, 258 combined tackles and 4.5 sacks. Joseph, meanwhile, led the league in interceptions in 2024 with nine and has totaled 20 in his four-year career.

Conklin was signed by the Lions this offseason to be the third tight end behind Sam LaPorta and Brock Wright. He has plenty of receiving upside, but is coming off a down year with the Los Angeles Chargers last year.

In place of Conklin, the Lions could give a long look to the likes of Jackson Meeks, Zach Horton, Thomas Gordon and undrafted free agent Miles Kitselman as the third tight end.

The Lions begin the preseason with a matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals on Aug. 13.

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