Brian Branch could have left Ford Field Sunday afternoon reliving all the plays he made in the Lions' 20-6 win over the Falcons. More than 66,000 fans did. Instead, Branch was lamenting a play he didn't make: "I missed a tackle today that I still think about," he said.
Early in the third quarter, Falcons running back Tyler Allgeier caught a pass in the flat, turned upfield and barreled through Branch and Alex Anzalone at the same time. Branch shook his head and said "stuff like that can't happen." It does, of course, in the NFL, where elite athletes push the boundaries of what's possible. Branch, the rookie defensive back out of Alabama, is here to tighten those boundaries, to tell even the most gifted offensive players what they can and can't do.
Like Bijan Robinson, who caught a pass late in the fourth quarter after drifting into Branch's territory and was staring up at the rafters, without his helmet, before he had a chance to blink. The eighth overall pick, Robinson has spent his first two weeks in the NFL making defenders look silly. Leave it Branch to welcome his fellow rookie to the league.
"Just licking my chops, knowing that he didn't see me coming," said Branch.
The officials flagged Branch for unnecessary roughness, even though it was Robinson who initiated the contact to his own head by trying to duck out of the tackle. There's no dodging heat-seeking missiles. Asked about the flag, Branch smiled and said, twice, "Fu*k it. Hey, show him that I’m not scared to tackle. I’ll take the flag, to be honest."
The Lions will take this out of Branch. The second-round pick has raced out of the gate like one of the best players in his draft, and he's just getting going. As veteran safety Tracy Walker said Sunday, "He’s definitely a great player and he’s only got room to continue to improve. He's locked-in and he handles his job. The sky’s the limit for him."
Branch was everywhere against the Falcons, on a day Detroit's depleted secondary needed him. He started the second quarter by flying into the backfield and dropping Robinson for a two-yard loss. A reminder that Branch had 14 tackles for loss last season, most in the nation by a defensive back. He ended the same drive by breaking up a pass on third down to last year's eighth overall pick Drake London. A reminder that Branch also had 23 passes defended over three standout seasons in the SEC.
A reminder that, sometimes, NFL general managers overthink the draft. Even Brad Holmes and the Lions chose three players before they took Branch No. 45 overall, Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell and Sam LaPorta. Don't be surprised if Branch winds up being the best of the bunch.
"He reminds me of a Tyrann Mathieu," said Lions veteran wide receiver Josh Reynolds. "He just seems to orbit around the ball, wherever it is. Whether it’s in the air or on the ground. he’s just a good player, man. You see it, the way he carries himself, the way he practices, he’s going to be a good player in this league for a long time."
Mathieu is a three-time All-Pro and potential Hall of Famer. Branch is three games into his NFL career, so let's not get ahead of ourselves. But if you listen to his teammates, the praise isn't premature. As fellow defensive back Chase Lucas said in the locker room Sunday, "That boy's gonna be an All-Pro. Mark my fu*kin words." Like Mathieu, Branch wears No. 32.
Branch also drew pre-draft comparisons to All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. In Detroit, he's starting to look like C.J. Gardner-Johnson. On Atlanta's first drive of the third quarter, Branch dragged down Allgeier for another tackle for loss to stunt a possession that ended three plays later in a missed field goal. On Atlanta's first drive of the fourth quarter, he was right on London's hip on a failed fourth-down pass. And on the second play of Atlanta's next drive, here came Branch flying into the backfield again to drop former fourth overall pick Kyle Pitts for a four-yard loss. It's almost like Gardner-Johnson never got hurt.
It was to Branch's benefit that the Lions kept the Falcons' offense in front of them by bottling up the run -- 44 yards on 20 carries. He was pursuing plays instead of chasing them. The result was one of the more impressive stat lines you'll see for a defensive back, let alone a rookie: 11 tackles, three tackles for loss, two passes defended. Asked if he had a favorite play, Branch rolled several into one: "I was shooting the gaps pretty good. I guess the film study paid off."
"He really stepped up," said Campbell. "You could feel his energy. He gets better every practice, every day ... and particularly today, he’s making big plays in critical moments as opposed to the other way. The more he plays, the better he gets and the more he understands what we’re trying to do with him. He’s a playmaker."
So is Gardner-Johnson, the star safety who might be lost for the season to a torn pec. It's a blow to Detroit's defense, but Branch has the wide-ranging talent to make up for it. He's still playing mostly as a nickel, and the Lions shouldn't be in any rush to expand his role and potentially expose him. But the imprint Branch left on Sunday's game had all the markings of a do-it-all defensive back.
He just thinks he could have done more.
"Facts," said Branch. "You gotta think about the negative in order to get better."