While the Detroit Lions earned a win over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 14, they saw safety Brian Branch suffer a season-ending Achilles injury. Now, the Lions have found his potential replacement.
Detroit has signed safety Damontae Kazee to their practice squad, via Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network. Their plan is to elevate Kazee to the active roster as soon as he is ready.
It'll be difficult to replace what Branch brought to the field. Over the 12 games he did appear in, the safety put up 75 tackles, nine passes defended and 2.5 sacks. Furthermore, Branch's 77.5 overall grade from Pro Football Focus ranked eighth/93 safeties. He ranked top five in both the pass rush (81.5, fifth) and against the run (82.6, fourth). Needless to say, Kazee will have big shoes to fill in the secondary.
The newest member of the Lions most recently appeared in four games with the Cleveland Browns during the 2025 season. However, he didn't register a stat.
Kazee spent the three previous seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he registered 112 tackles, seven passes defended and five interceptions. Over his entire nine-year NFL career, Kazee has put up 363 tackles, 24 passes defended and 17 interceptions.
He is joining the Lions at a crucial time in the season. With their win, Detroit is now 8-5. In the midst of the playoff chase, they cannot afford to let up even with Branch done for the year. Kazee will now take the reigns and try to keep Detroit's secondary afloat. The Lions are at least confident of his success in their system.
