Brian Branch: Felt Like 'Real-Life Madden' on Sideline

Brian Branch is looking forward to return on Sunday against Ravens.

The Lions are about to get some big-time defensive help just in time for their matchup with Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. It'll come in the form of defensive back Brian Branch, who confirmed to reporters Thursday that he'll be back in the Lions' lineup in Week 7. 

On Thursday, the first-year pro practiced for the first time since injuring his ankle in the third quarter of Detroit's Week 4 win against the Green Bay Packers.

He did try to return in the Lions' divisional tilt with the Packers, but lasted only a few plays in the fourth quarter before tweaking his ankle a second time.

Subsequently, Branch, the No. 45 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, was forced to sit out the last two weeks. It was far from a good feeling for the Alabama product, who felt like he was letting down his teammates.

"I felt like I was being lazy, sitting out," Branch told reporters Thursday. "(I) just hated being on the sideline, man, not being able to help my teammates."

When he has suited up this season, Branch has been an invaluable member of the Lions' secondary, and one of the best rookies in the entire National Football League.

Inside the Numbers: Lions Have Even Matchup Against Ravens

In four games this season, the versatile defensive back has proven to be a hard-hitting defender with solid coverage skills. He's racked up a total of 25 tackles, including three tackles for loss, while amassing four passes defensed and an interception returned for touchdown.

All the while, the nickel corner has earned a 79.7 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, good for the eighth-best mark among all corners in the league. He also owns the Lions' best rush defense PFF grade (89.1) and the second-best coverage grade among all Detroit defenders (80.4).

Needless to say, Branch is a much more valuable asset to the Lions on the field than on the sideline. Yet, he was able to gain some valuable insight by listening in to defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn's play calls, via a headset, the last two weeks.

"I thought that was cool," Branch said. "Shoot, (I) felt like I was in real-life Madden."

The Lions could use a video game-esque performance from Branch in his return to the field Sunday. 

He'll face a Ravens offense, led by Jackson, which loves to run the football and does so proficiently. In fact, through six weeks, John Harbaugh's team has attempted the most rushing attempts in the league (203), and has also amassed the third-most rushing touchdowns (9) and the fifth-most yards on the ground (869). Meanwhile, Jackson, the 2019 NFL MVP, is completing 69.9 of his passes.

Branch knows that Detroit is going to have its hands full with attempting to limit Jackson and Baltimore's offense. 

"They’re a good offense," the first-year defensive back expressed. "We’re going to have to contain Lamar in that pocket, and they got good receivers over there that we’re going to have to guard in the back-end. And, if everybody does their job, (we) should be successful."