Dr. David Chao, who served as the head team doctor in the National Football League, has provided some news that will sound alarm bells for the Detroit Lions and their fans.
According to Chao, Lions safety Kerby Joseph may be prevented from playing the entirety of his contract extension with the club.
While speaking at Radio Row ahead of the Super Bowl, Chao offered a grim long-term outlook for the All-Pro safety.
“This one’s a little dicey, here. Once again rooting for him,” said Dr. Chao. “But articular cartilage is the holy grail. If you could reproduce or regrow articular cartilage, you would win the Nobel Prize, okay. It is the holy grail. It’s the tread on your tires. You can’t just get retreads or put new tires on it. How do you replace the rubber on your tires? That’s the articular cartilage. Poor vasculature. Very difficult.”
“Very early in his career, Jadeveon Clowney had a micro fracture surgery that is for full thickness cartilage loss in an isolated area. I said that can be career-altering,” said Dr. Chao. “He’s outproduced expectations. Look at his longevity. But, that’s also why he’s never gotten a long-term deal, because everyone’s always worried about that knee.”
“Kerby Joseph, I don’t know the extent of his knee. But when you’re starting to talk about stem cells, that means you’re beyond even micro fracture,” said Dr. Chao. “Look, Hail-Mary’s get completed. Stem cells can help, but it’s not one first down and you get to kneel down to win the game. It’s not that. It’s very dicey.”
Chao, who acknowledged that he has not personally reviewed Joseph’s medical charts, ultimately said that he feels the chances of him playing out his contract is a “Hail Mary”.
“I wish him the best. But this is not good news for a young player, and not good news for the Detroit Lions. Look, if you can get some time out of him, over the next year or two, a couple of years, I think that would be a victory,” Dr. Chao commented further. “To say that he’s going to fulfill this contract and get another one is a Hail-Mary. And I hope I’m wrong.”
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Detroit Lions All-Pro Safety Kerby Joseph Was Hurt In Week 4 Against The Cleveland Browns
Joseph came into the 2025 NFL season with understandably high expectations, as he wowed audiences in 2024 by racking up an impressive nine interceptions, 83 tackles, and 12 pass breakups. He then signed four-year, $86 million contract extension, making him the highest-paid safety in Lions team history.
However, he was hurt against the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 28 in Week 4. While he eventually came back, he re-aggravated the injury, and was eventually placed on Injured Reserve in December, ending his season.
Dan Campbell Stressed The Importance of Managing The Injury
In early December, Lions head coach Dan Campbell emphasized the importance of doing their best to manage Kerby’s injury setback.
“I don’t think it’s necessarily going away, but I think you do the best you can to manage it,” Campbell said. “It’s like a lot of these guys that have gotten some injuries, could be cartilage or meniscus or anything like that. You do your best to manage it.”
Very Worrying News Announced On $86 million Detroit Lions Safety