Getty Kerby Joseph celebrates entering the field for the Lions in 2022.
One of the best stories of the 2022 season for the Detroit Lions was the emergence of rookie safety Kerby Joseph.
After starting the season in relative obscurity, Joseph burst on the scene in a big way by the middle of the year. As the season wrapped up, it was clear he had one of the brighter futures on the team as he learned the league.
The game that filled Joseph with confidence came against the Green Bay Packers on November 6, 2022 when he intercepted Aaron Rodgers twice in a 15-9 win. He would go on to get Rodgers one more time in the season finale, totaling three picks against the future Hall of Famer. As he explained, though, the season could have been even more disastrous for Rodgers at his hands.
On Good Morning Football, Joseph revealed that he felt as if he could have had six interceptions against Rodgers on the season. While he got the three, there were a few close calls that could have gone the other way.
The first player with 3 interceptions vs Aaron Rodgers in a single season…
@JKERB25 brought a surprise to the studio with him this morning 👀
“I got him three times. I’m not going to lie. It should have been five. The last game, I dropped that first (interception). Then that second one got called back. Actually, should have been six. That one-hander on third-down, fourth-down? I could get that,” Joseph said.
It’s no shade to Rodgers at all, though. Joseph admitted that the quarterback was a favorite of his growing up, and he dreamed about having a moment against him when he was in the league himself.
“I want to say to Aaron Rodgers, (you) were my favorite quarterback growing up. Coming into this game, me and my agent, my managers. We were always talking about how my first interception will be against him. It surely was. Spoke it into existence. I got that first one, I got it so early in the game, I was hungry. I ain’t done. I just kept going, kept playing. I got that second one, I’m lit. If I didn’t get out of that game early with that concussion, I probably would have made history some more,” Joseph said.
Three picks of Rodgers was already the most any player had against him in a season, and for Joseph to be the one to net that feat, it is pretty incredible.
According to Joseph, Rodgers might be lucky that things weren’t even worse for him on the field against the Lions this past season.
Kerby Joseph Shows Critical Interception Ball
While some players might have trouble locating their treasured heirlooms, Joseph would not be counted as one such person. He keeps the ball close to him at all times, as he showed during the interview.
During the conversation, Joseph quickly went to a bag he was carrying and produced the ball, joking that he keeps Rodgers’ final pass from Green Bay like a form of identification.
“I keep it on me like ID.”
“This is the ball right here,” Joseph said with a laugh, pulling it out of the bag. “I (thought of getting his signature) but I had an interview with ESPN so I didn’t have time to go back over there. It says 31 interception at Green Bay, fourth-quarter.”
It’s clear that Joseph understands the significance of the ball he has, and the fact that he travels with the souvenir only proves how seriously he takes what he was able to do during his rookie season to one of the legends of the game.
Kerby Joseph Enjoyed Solid 2022 Rookie Stats
If Joseph goes on to have the kind of career Lions fans hope he does, the rookie might only need to point to the Green Bay games as a tipping point.
As it stands, Joseph had a great year statistically for a young player. He would finish the season with 83 tackles, four interceptions, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and eight passes defended. Three out of his four interceptions came at the expense of Rodgers, and his effort on November 6 was particularly impressive:
At the end of the day, Joseph looks like a rising star for the Lions in the future on the defensive side of the ball. He will head into the 2023 season with some major momentum as a result of these feats.
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Kerby Joseph Makes Bold Claim About Interceptions of Aaron Rodgers