Brian Amani Branch (born on October 22, 2001 in Fayetteville in the state of Georgia in the United States) is an American professional American football athlete playing as a defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) since the 2023 season.
At the college level, he played three seasons for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide in the NCAA Division I FBS.
He was then selected in the second round of the 2023 draft by the Detroit Lions franchise.
Branch comes out of high school as a four-star recruit and third best safety in his class. Receiving offers from 27 NCAA Division I FBS institutions, he takes official visits to Alabama, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma[[1]. At the opening of the signing period, Branch became the first player of the year officially signed by the Crimson Tide, who were then looking for replacements for Shyheim Carter, Jared Mayden and Xavier McKinney[[2].
Branch’s first season in Alabama is affected by the Covid-19 pandemic which, among other things, prevents him from participating in normal training camps. Nevertheless, he managed to carve out a place as a regular player with the team, among other things by playing several positions including cornerback[[3]. After three years with the team, he declared himself eligible for the 2023 NFL draft. He is then considered the second best safety of the vintage behind Antonio Johnson and ahead of JL Skinner by Dane Brugler of The Athletic. His versatility, having played mainly as a nickelback during the last university year, is then considered his best attraction, while his lack of interceptions is criticized.[[4]. Coming off a season where he was named to the All-American team, the Detroit Lions made a trade during the draft to move up three spots and draft Branch at 45e rang[[5].
Upon arriving in the NFL, Branch found himself behind CJ Gardner-Johnson, a player to whom Branch was compared, for the starting nickelback position. However, his performance led the team to name Branch the starter and place Gardner-Johnson at safety in place of Tracy Walker. After a strong first season where he quickly became a crowd favorite, Branch began his transition to the safety position where he joined Kerby Joseph and Ifeatu Melifonwu[[6],[[7].
His transition to safety is off to a good start. Through the first third of the 2024 NFL season, Branch is rated as the best safety in the league according to Pro Football Focus and forms an effective tandem with Joseph[[8]. He particularly stood out during the game against the Dallas Cowboys where he had two interceptions on Dak Prescott and a forced fumble on Ryan Flournoy.[[9].
| Year | Team | MJ | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Alone | Ast. | Sacks | Nb. | Yards | Def. | TD | Nb. | Rec. | ||||||
| 2023 | Detroit Lions | 15 | 74 | 50 | 24 | 1,0 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2024 | Detroit Lions | ? | Current season | Current season | ? | ? | |||||||||
| NFL Totals | 15 | 74 | 50 | 24 | 1,0 | 3 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |||||
- (en-US) « Brian Branch, Sandy Creek, Safety “, on 247sports (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) Mike Rodak, « Alabama signs four-star Georgia safety Brian Branch “, on AL.com, December 18, 2019 (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) Charlie Potter, « Brian Branch seeing benefits of practicing at every DB position “, on 247sports, September 7, 2021 (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) Dane Brugler, « 2023 NFL Draft safety class: Antonio Johnson, Brian Branch win with versatility “, on The AthleticThe New York Times, August 18, 2022 (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) Tim Twentyman, « Lions trade up, draft defensive back Brian Branch “, on Detroit Lions, 28 avril 2023 (accessed on October 31, 2024)
- (en-US) Jeremy Reisman, « Detroit Lions have big plans for defensive back Brian Branch “, on SB Nation, 27 mars 2024 (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) Mark Inabinnet, « Brian Branch feeling the love in Detroit more than at Alabama “, on AL.com, January 25, 2024 (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) Vito Chirco, « Lions’ Brian Branch Being Called ‘Best Player’ in Football “, on Sports Illustrated, October 23, 2024 (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) Mark Inabinnet, « Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch: ‘The ultimate football player’ “, on AL.com, October 14, 2024 (accessed on October 31, 2024).
- (en-US) « Brian Branch Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College “, on Pro-Football-Reference.com (accessed on October 31, 2024).
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