Detroit Lions Friendly Fire Injuries: 2025 & 2024 Seasons
How much impact did friendly fire have on the Lions the past 2 seasons?
Friendly fire is maybe the most regrettable cause of injuries. Lions players have enough to worry about on the NFL field without the risk of being injured by a teammate, or even themselves…
I reviewed all my Lions injury videos of 2025 and 2024 to look for friendly fire. Here is the quick recap followed by all the videos - ranked by significance.
I also assign avoidable or unavoidable tags to the injuries, with the caveat that there is gray area here. “Avoidable” injuries have unnecessary and foreseeable action that led to the injury.
Lions 2025 Friendly Fire Recap
6 friendly fire injuries
0 were “avoidable”
All injuries minor and did not lead to any missed games.
Conclusion: Friendly fire was not a problem during the 2025 season.
Lions 2024 Friendly Fire Recap
8 friendly fire injuries
Only 1, maybe 2, were “avoidable”
4 led to major injuries with significant time missed.
Conclusion: Friendly fire had a huge impact on the 2024 season.
2025 Detroit Lions Friendly Fire Injury Videos
#1 Amon-Ra St. Brown - Right low ankle sprain
Unavoidable
Rolled up on by a teammate, ARSB left this game but was back for the next.
#2 Jack Campbell - Lip laceration
Unavoidable
This one could have been avoided if Branch makes the easy interception, but otherwise was just a fluky occurrence. Campbell’s laceration looked nasty, but the repair was excellent. Campbell missed no time.
#3 Jared Goff - Left foot/ankle
Unavoidable
Just a very minor issue here that Goff played through.
#4 Brian Branch - Right knee contusion
Unavoidable
Branch was banged up many times throughout the season including this minor contusion. Campbell could have had a serious leg-whip injury here (see Aidan Hutchinson and Khalil Dorsey in 2024), but escaped clean.
#5 Graham Glasgow - Low back cleated
Unavoidable
This one was painful, but minor, as Glasgow returned later in the game.
#6 Amik Robertson - Left thigh contusion
Unavoidable
No missed games for this minor issue as Branch’s shoulder slammed into Robertson’s thigh. If the contact was just a couple inches lower, Robertson’s knee would have been at risk. Football is a game of inches, in more ways than one.
2024 Detroit Lions Friendly Fire Injury Videos
#1 Aidan Hutchinson - Left tib/fib fracture
Unavoidable
Just two elite players getting to the QB at the same time… the result of which ended Hutch’s season in Week 6.
#2 Khalil Dorsey - Right tib/fib fracture
Unavoidable
This “trains crossing in the night” freak injury ended Dorsey’s season in Week 15.
#3 Alex Anzalone - Left forearm fracture
Possibly avoidable
While this injury possibly could have been avoided, it’s hard to blame Branch here as he was ahead of Anzalone, whose arm was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Anzalone missed the next 6 games but returned for the final 2 games of the season.
#4 Amik Robertson - Left humerus fracture
Avoidable
This was the most “avoidable” of all the friendly fires as Robertson had his man securely wrapped up. Sometimes these big, late, legal hits can create gamechanging turnovers, but sometimes they can injure your own teammate.
Robertson’s loss in the first couple minutes of this playoff game may have affected the outcome.
#5 Alex Anzalone - Concussion
Unavoidable
Poor Anzalone shows up again on this list when Baker Mayfield’s shiftiness got two Lion LB’s caught in a bad position. Anzalone missed the next game.
#6 Terrion Arnold - Right foot sprain/contusion
Unavoidable
This foot collision could have had a much worse outcome like a Lisfranc or turf toe. Arnold left this game, but was back for the next.
#7 Carlton Davis - Cleat to head
Unavoidable
This fluky injury caused Davis to leave the game, but he was back for the next. Implausibly, this was not the only unusual head injury for Davis in 2024, as he had a season-ending jaw fracture later on.
#8 Penei Sewell - Left knee
Unavoidable
Jared Goff falls into Sewell leading to an awkward leg contortion in the playoff game. The video had Lions’ fans worried, but the limber All-Pro did not miss a snap.
For an analysis of Detroit Lions training camp injuries…
Interesting article jimmy! Thoughts on the Branch Achilles rupture - seems like if Anzalone does trap his foot for a brief moment, that may not have happened?