Kerby Joseph's return from a degenerative condition in his knee has potentially taken another turn for the worse.
Detroit Lions coach Dan Campbell cast doubt on when Joseph will be back in the lineup, saying Monday, Sept. 21, he won't play the veteran ballhawk "until he's ready."
"I just know we were strengthening the knee and it wasn’t a setback but there was a little time there where we weren’t able to do everything we needed to do and so now we’re back at it," Campbell said. "And until we can get the knee to a certain point to where it feels strong, as strong as we can possibly get it and he feels comfortable, we’re not going to put him out there."
Joseph has not played since Oct. 12 last season, when the pain in his knee became too much to bear.
A third-round pick out of Illinois in 2022, Joseph led the NFL with nine interceptions in 2024 and signed a four-year extension that made him the highest-paid safety in the league last spring.
He said this summer he woke up with swelling in his knee one day during training camp last year and tried to play through the injury before he was later diagnosed with a cartilage issue in the joint. At the time, Joseph said he was "super optimistic" he would return early in the season.
The Lions placed Joseph and fellow safety Brian Branch on the physically unable to perform list to start the season. Both are eligible to return to practice this week, though Campbell said he doesn't expect to have either on the field.
Players on PUP have to miss a minimum four games.
"It’s tough to say [when we'll get them back]," Campbell said. "I mean, I think Branch has a chance to be back sooner than Kerby, but it won’t be this week."
The Lions have struggled defensively in their 1-1 start. They rank 31st in the league in total and scoring defense and have struggled with communication issues in their secondary.
Avonte Maddox, who started the first two games at safety alongside Chuck Clark, suffered a season-ending foot injury in last week's loss to the Buffalo Bills and the Lions are looking for veteran replacements to compete with Thomas Harper and Christian Izien for time at the position.
Asked why the Lions don't just play Joseph at this point to see how the knee responds, Campbell noted that Joseph was away from the team for a period of time this summer for personal reasons. Joseph returned before the Lions' Week 1 win over the New Orleans Saints.
"Yeah, it’s a good question and nothing I’m going to say is going to make anybody feel better about anything.," Campbell said.
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Lions injury update: Brian Branch closer to returning than Kerby Joseph
