Veteran Detroit Lions safety Kerby Joseph missed his fifth straight game in Week 12 due to a frustrating injury saga. Dealing with a bone bruise in his knee, the Lions' star defensive back has taken longer than expected to return to action. Head coach Dan Campbell said early last week that Joseph's chances of suiting up against the Giants were slim but that he has been making good progress. Considering that the Lions play on Thanksgiving Thursday, it's safe to assume that they will be without their All-Pro defender once again.
Even though Joseph has not been as productive as he was last year, the Lions still desperately miss him in the backfield. After dealing with knee concerns in training camp, Joseph started the season a little slow, receiving a 59.1 defensive grade on Pro Football Focus after being the best safety in football last year.
Kerby Joseph's Absence Has Left Lions in Dire Spot
Yet, in recent weeks, his absence has been severely felt. Opposing offenses feel a lot more comfortable throwing downfield without an elite ballhawk like Joseph back there. On Sunday, the Giants averaged a whopping 10.7 yards per passing attempt. Wan'Dale Robinson, Theo Johnson, Isaiah Hodgins, and even Jameis Winston had catches over 30 yards. As a team, the Giants averaged 21.0 yards per reception.
For the season, the Lions allow the highest average depth of target (ADOT) with 10.28 yards, over a yard higher than the second-placed defense. Quarterbacks have gotten increasingly less hesitant to lob the ball down the field without any fear of getting intercepted.
If Joseph remains out, this will be more of a problem against the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys in Detroit's next two games. Both teams have quarterbacks with better arms and elite deep threat receivers, and those games could turn ugly if the Lions' secondary isn't prepared.
Thomas Harper has been playing at a high level in Joseph's absence, but he is not the ballhawk Joseph is. In fact, the only defender with more than one interception for the Lions this season is Joseph. Despite only playing in six games, he leads the Lions with three interceptions after pacing the team with nine last year. Fellow safety Brian Branch has four pass breakups, while Harper has two, but the duo hasn't been able to convert those to takeaways so far.
That is where Joseph is badly needed. The Lions have punched above their weight defensively for most of the season, but the injuries may finally be taking a toll on them. Giving up over 500 yards of offense to a Jameis Winston-led team should raise all alarm bells heading into the final six weeks of the season.