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The Detroit Lions don't necessarily need to see how Brian Branch and Sam LaPorta look in their return to the field from season-ending injuries before signing them to long-term contract extensions.
As Lions president Rod Wood said during a pre-NFL Draft event Thursday, April 16, for the Detroit Economic Club, the team hopes to sign all four its top 2023 draft picks to extensions this offseason. He compared Branch and LaPorta's situation to what the Lions went through with Aidan Hutchinson a year ago.
"They’re all going to be in the building soon," Wood said. "Guys start showing up next week, so once we get an assessment of how they’re doing, it doesn’t mean they have to play before we would do an extension. We had a similar situation with Hutch a couple years ago, with him coming off his injury, and we were in active discussions with him beginning in training camp but it took some time because it’s a big deal.
"These may take time cause they’re big deals, not because of the injury. But we’ll look at their health and that’ll be factored into how we approach it but the plan is now to try and keep all these guys that we’ve drafted."
YOU DON'T KNOW, JACK: Why Jack Campbell's contract extension could be extra tricky
Hutchinson, the Lions' first-round pick in 2022, signed a four-year, $180 million extension last October a little more than a year after he broke the tibia and fibula in his left leg.
He started all 17 games last season and had a career-high 14½ sacks.
Both Branch and LaPorta underwent season-ending surgeries last year; their status for the start of training camp is unknown.
Branch tore the Achilles tendon in his right leg Dec. 4 in a win over the Dallas Cowboys, while LaPorta underwent surgery to repair a herniated disc in November.
Both players were 2023 second-round picks entering the final season of their rookie contracts – and both are among the NFL's best at their positions when healthy.
The Lions also hope to sign 2023 first-rounders Jahmyr Gibbs and Jack Campbell to long-term extensions this offseason.
"You talk about free agency and trades, every team says they want to draft well, develop their guys and re-sign them, and we’re one of the only teams that is doing that," Wood said. "And generally, we’ve re-signed guys a little early, which means we’ve got them done and got that behind us and generally got it at a decent pay scale, relative to what it might have been had you waited a year to get it done."
The Lions have signed cornerstone players Hutchinson, Jared Goff, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Alim McNeill, Jameson Williams and Kerby Joseph to long-term extensions in the past two years, with the deals for Goff, Sewell, St. Brown and Joseph coming around NFL draft week.
Wood declined to say Thursday if the team could finalize any extensions before the draft next week, but he indicated the saga of Joseph's health – the safety is dealing with a degenerative condition in his knee that general manager Brad Holmes said the team wasn't aware of until last fall – won't give the Lions pause about re-signing Branch or LaPorta.
"Obviously with Sam and Brian, they’re coming back from injuries so you want to make sure they’re healthy," Wood said. "Jack and Gibbs are first-round players so we have the option of a fifth-round option year for them. So we’re taking all that into account. We have a plan and unfortunately I don’t intend to announce it here."
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions don't need to see Sam LaPorta, Brian Branch healthy
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As Lions president Rod Wood said during a pre-NFL Draft event Thursday, April 16, for the Detroit Economic Club, the team hopes to sign all four its top 2023 draft picks to extensions this offseason. He compared Branch and LaPorta's situation to what the Lions went through with Aidan Hutchinson a year ago.
"They’re all going to be in the building soon," Wood said. "Guys start showing up next week, so once we get an assessment of how they’re doing, it doesn’t mean they have to play before we would do an extension. We had a similar situation with Hutch a couple years ago, with him coming off his injury, and we were in active discussions with him beginning in training camp but it took some time because it’s a big deal.
"These may take time cause they’re big deals, not because of the injury. But we’ll look at their health and that’ll be factored into how we approach it but the plan is now to try and keep all these guys that we’ve drafted."
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YOU DON'T KNOW, JACK: Why Jack Campbell's contract extension could be extra tricky
Hutchinson, the Lions' first-round pick in 2022, signed a four-year, $180 million extension last October a little more than a year after he broke the tibia and fibula in his left leg.
He started all 17 games last season and had a career-high 14½ sacks.
Both Branch and LaPorta underwent season-ending surgeries last year; their status for the start of training camp is unknown.
Branch tore the Achilles tendon in his right leg Dec. 4 in a win over the Dallas Cowboys, while LaPorta underwent surgery to repair a herniated disc in November.
You must be registered for see images attach
Both players were 2023 second-round picks entering the final season of their rookie contracts – and both are among the NFL's best at their positions when healthy.
The Lions also hope to sign 2023 first-rounders Jahmyr Gibbs and Jack Campbell to long-term extensions this offseason.
"You talk about free agency and trades, every team says they want to draft well, develop their guys and re-sign them, and we’re one of the only teams that is doing that," Wood said. "And generally, we’ve re-signed guys a little early, which means we’ve got them done and got that behind us and generally got it at a decent pay scale, relative to what it might have been had you waited a year to get it done."
The Lions have signed cornerstone players Hutchinson, Jared Goff, Penei Sewell, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Alim McNeill, Jameson Williams and Kerby Joseph to long-term extensions in the past two years, with the deals for Goff, Sewell, St. Brown and Joseph coming around NFL draft week.
Wood declined to say Thursday if the team could finalize any extensions before the draft next week, but he indicated the saga of Joseph's health – the safety is dealing with a degenerative condition in his knee that general manager Brad Holmes said the team wasn't aware of until last fall – won't give the Lions pause about re-signing Branch or LaPorta.
"Obviously with Sam and Brian, they’re coming back from injuries so you want to make sure they’re healthy," Wood said. "Jack and Gibbs are first-round players so we have the option of a fifth-round option year for them. So we’re taking all that into account. We have a plan and unfortunately I don’t intend to announce it here."
Dave Birkett covers the Lions for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Bluesky, X and Instagram at @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions don't need to see Sam LaPorta, Brian Branch healthy
Continue reading...
