Dan Campbell came out of the bye feeling better about his Detroit Lions at 3-2 than he did a year ago at 5-2, and he gets two starters back for Sunday’s NFC North opener against the Green Bay Packers.
The coach and his staff used the week off to study the first five games, looking for ways to be more consistent on offense, defense and special teams. Campbell described a young roster that is still climbing. “I do think we’re beginning to figure out who we are a little bit here,” he said on Monday, adding that the Lions are trying to improve a little each week rather than make one big jump.
The comparison with 2025 is deliberate. Detroit went into its bye at 5-2 last season, then won only four of its last 10 games and missed the playoffs. Campbell said some of the problems behind that slide were already there during the fast start.
Branch and Mays are back
The help Campbell mentioned arrived on Saturday, when the club activated safety Brian Branch from the physically unable to perform list and center Cade Mays from injured reserve, and removed both from the final injury report. On Monday he had said that, barring a setback, both would play.
"Barring anything negatively happening between now and the game, we plan on playing both of those guys." -Coach Campbell on Brian Branch and Cade Mays
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) October 19, 2026
Branch has not played since tearing his Achilles tendon last December. In 12 games in 2025 he made 75 tackles and broke up nine passes, with 2.5 sacks and five stops behind the line, and defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard plans to find the right spots for him rather than set a fixed role. Mays signed a three-year deal in the offseason to be the starting center but needed surgery after a wrist injury in training camp, so Sunday would be his first game for Detroit. Juice Scruggs, who held the job through five games, stays ready at center and could also get work at guard or in heavy and goal-line packages.
Campbell also praised Penei Sewell’s move from right to left tackle, saying he looks smoother on the left side.
Coach Campbell on Penei Sewell's transition over to left tackle pic.twitter.com/Swsk34AEWJ
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) October 19, 2026
The first division game
Campbell said it felt as if every other NFC North team had already played each other before the Lions got their turn. The Packers arrive at 4-2 on a three-game winning streak, the last of them a 23-13 win over Dallas. What stands out to Campbell on tape is a defense under new coordinator Jonathan Gannon that disguises its coverage, showing one look and playing another. His answer is to stay out of second-and-long and third-and-long. There is a familiar face across the field, too: Detroit offensive coordinator Drew Petzing worked under Gannon in Arizona for the previous three years.
The Lions have not won two games in a row this season. They beat Arizona 45-21 on October 11 before the bye.
What comes next
Kickoff at Ford Field is 4:25 p.m. EDT on Sunday, October 25; follow it in the Game Center. Detroit stays home to face Minnesota on Sunday, November 1, while Green Bay hosts Carolina on Thursday, October 29.
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