Watch: Lions rookie Brian Branch’s great ‘welcome to the NFL’ moment

A lot of times, when you hear the phrase “welcome to the NFL, rookie” it means the player did something wrong. That’s not the case with Detroit Lions defensive back Brian Branch.

The second-rounder from Alabama announced hiss presence with authority on the very first defensive drive of the preseason opener against the New York Giants. Branch sniffed out a short swing pass from New York QB Tyrod Taylor and exploded into veteran wideout Cole Beasley for a crushing tackle for loss.

This is exactly what the Lions want to see from Branch, their second second-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft. He picked up a tackle on the very next play too, though that one was negated by a Giants holding penalty.

Story originally appeared on Lions Wire