Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch thinks they can go all the way this season: “We’re trying to get that Super Bowl”

The Lions have been on an upward trajectory in recent years and the air of optimism surrounding Detroit is epitomized by safety Brian Branch, who believes they have what it takes to feature in a first ever Super Bowl in the 2025 NFL season. 

The Detroit Lions’ remarkable turnaround

After a disastrous 3-13-1 regular season in 2021, the Lions have enjoyed a remarkable turnaround in fortunes under head coach Dan Campbell.

Their three subsequent campaigns have seen them finish 9-8, 12-5 and 15-2, and they came within a whisker of a maiden championship game appearance in 2023, when they lost to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship game. 

Injuries ruin Super Bowl LIX hopes

Last year, they clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC thanks to their superb regular-season record but, significantly hampered by injuries in defense, were beaten by the Washington Commanders in the divisional playoffs. 

Aidan Hutchinson, Marcus Davenport, Derrick Barnes, Alex Anzalone, Malcolm Rodriguez, Alim McNeill, Carlton Davis. These seven players all missed large parts of the 2024 season, which proved too much for Detroit to cope with in their postseason. 

Minus Rodriguez and McNeill, who are still recovering from ACL tears, Campbell will finally hope to have a healthy roster to work with at the start of the 2025 NFL season, which Branch believes should be a warning to the rest of the league. 

Branch: Lions “better than last year”

“I feel like we’re better than last year,” the 23-year-old told the Detroit Free Press. “We’re hungry, and I feel that’s gonna separate us. Our chemistry is on a whole other level.”

“Last year, injuries, they were kind of against us,” Branch continued. “This year, everybody’s healthy that is coming back. And we’re just hungry. We’ve still got the same mission and the same goals. We’re trying to get that Super Bowl.”

Although the Lions are four-time NFL champions (1935, 1952, 1953 and 1957), they are one of four franchises, along with the Cleveland Browns, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Houston Texans, who have never featured in a Super Bowl. 

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