Less than 24 hours before the NFL’s trade deadline, the Detroit Lions made a deal to bring in some safety depth, which is undoubtedly going to raise some questions and concerns regarding Kerby Joseph.
The Lions traded a sixth-round pick to the Jets in exchange for 26-year-old former third-round pick Andre Cisco who will undoubtedly provide some much-needed secondary depth.
That does, however, raise some questions about Joseph’s return. If he’s really nearing a return, does it make a ton of sense to address the safety spot instead of maybe linebacker or cornerback, where the real weaknesses lie after some injuries and other factors?
Trading for another free safety could mean that the staff isn’t fully confident that Joseph will be back to 100 percent any time soon.
The Lions’ star free safety has been out since Oct. 12 of last season, when he went down with an injury against the Chiefs. His knee injury has proven to be more serious than originally anticipated, and there have been whispers that it is potentially career-ending, but definitely career-altering.
Reports did indicate that Joseph looked “awesome” at practice last week, but that could mean just about anything, considering there were rumblings that he may never play again.
The 2024 All-Pro safety has a lot of work to do still if he wants to return this season and have an impact on the Super Bowl-contending Lions. They could use a guy like him in the secondary, and this trade for Cisco could just be a move to give him quality depth in the event that he suffers a setback or just needs to limit his snaps (which is more likely).
The one trade that the Lions have made so far being for a player who shares the same position as Joseph is not the best sign, though.
The Lions still have needs to address
No one can hate on Brad Holmes too much for this deal because he got a solid safety in Cisco who’s still young and who has 293 tackles, 2.5 sacks, eight interceptions, and 26 pass breakups in six years in the NFL. He’s the perfect backup option who can spot start, too.
But there are more needs to be addressed.
Earlier in the year, with the backup running back health issues that the Lions faced, it would have made sense to make a deal for another rusher, but Sione Vaki has been a more than serviceable backup and deserves to hold that role. At this point in the season, however, the cornerback and linebacker positions need to be addressed.
Losing Terrion Arnold before the season has proven to be a tough blow, and Detroit has found a way to win with DJ Reed and Ennis Rakestraw Jr. stepping up. Reed just missed the Dolphins game, and Rakestraw is in his first year as a starter. The cornerback room could definitely use a little more help.
And the linebackers are missing Jack Campbell, who suffered a scary injury against Minnesota and is still hospitalized, and Jimmy Rolder, who just hit the injured list. He’s not coming back anytime soon, so it’s up to the front office to give the unit some help. Derrick Barnes is solid, but he needs help.
There are other needs to address which makes the decision to acquire a safety slightly concerning.
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