Lions DB Brian Branch showed ‘sky’s-the-limit’ upside in rout of Cowboys
Editor's note: This is the sixth installment of a season-long series on a breakout star from the past week of NFL action. The Week 6 winner: Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch
After the Lions' 47-9 thrashing of the Dallas Cowboys, Alex Anzalone cracked a smile — the biggest of his postgame press conference.
The Detroit linebacker had just been asked about teammate Brian Branch, a rising second-year safety who seemed to be everywhere in the blowout victory.
"He's a ball player and a ball hawk," Anzalone said.
Elite playmaking made Branch the defensive star for the Lions on Sunday, with two interceptions, a forced fumble and six tackles (five solo) in the win. He became just the second player in franchise history with two picks and a forced fumble in a single game, joining Dre' Bly.
In four games this season, Branch has three interceptions, which matches his 15-game total as a rookie in 2023. The former Alabama star is pacing better than his rookie year in several other categories, too — in pass breakups, combined tackles, solo tackles, tackles for loss, quarterback hits, completion rate allowed, yards allowed, air yards allowed, yards allowed per reception and passer rating allowed when targeted, according to Pro Football Reference.
The 45th pick in last year's draft, Branch has made a seamless transition to safety after playing primarily nickel as a rookie. Among safeties this season, he ranks third in interceptions (3), is tied for first in forced incompletions (5) and third in forced incompletion rate (29%), according to Pro Football Focus.
Branch's continued ascension with the Lions becomes all the more paramount in the wake of Aidan Hutchinson's leg injury, which is expected to sideline the superstar edge rusher up to six months.
Defensively, Detroit's Super Bowl hopes will be leaning more than ever on its secondary, led in part by Branch.
Before missing the Lions' Week 4 game against the Seattle Seahawks, the team's last contest before Sunday (Week 5 bye), he ranked first in the league with seven pass breakups.
"He is the ultimate football player," coach Dan Campbell said Sunday. "He gets it. He sees it. The safety position in our defense is perfect for him, because it allows him to roam and he's got some freedom. It's structured, but he's got some freedom to be able to move a little bit and play ball. And man, you just see the sky's the limit with him."
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Why Branch was successful in Week 6
His versatility in the Lions' scheme, for one.
Branch lines up as a safety in two-high and single-high looks, but he also roams around the box and plays nickel, where he played 72% of his snaps as a rookie, per PFF. Of his 233 snaps this season, 90 have come at free safety (38.6%), 72 in the box (30.9%), 55 in the slot (23.6%), 11 on the defensive line (4.7%) and five at cornerback (2.1%).
Branch's first interception on Sunday, which was in the first quarter, came in a two-high look. He had the flat responsibility in zone coverage, but he sank quickly to make a leaping snag of a pass intended for CeeDee Lamb, who was drifting to the corner of the end zone behind him.
His second pick came early in the fourth quarter, when he was the deep safety in single-high coverage. Dak Prescott threw too high for receiver Jalen Brooks over the middle (as he was looking into the sun), and Branch was there for the easy pick, which he returned 47 yards, setting up a Lions touchdown on the next play.
And Branch was also deployed as a blitzer. It's how he registered a big hit on Prescott in the third quarter.
The 2023 second-round pick is becoming one of the best safeties in football, making plays all over the field.
"If he keeps it up, he's having an All-Pro season in my opinion," Anzalone said. "I'm excited for him to keep growing as a safety and keep getting better in different situations. The sky's the limit for him."
Ben Arthur is an NFL reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.
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