Jahmyr Gibbs and Brian Branch were two of the Detroit Lions' best players as rookies. Neither has been on the field this spring because of injuries.

Both Gibbs, who's dealing with a soft tissue injury, and Branch, who's returning from offseason surgery, are expected back by the start of training camp, but Lions coach Dan Campbell said their absence this spring, while not a major issue, is more than a big, fat nothing.

"Certainly you miss growth," Campbell said. "That’s the thing with being a young player, you kind of miss this six- to eight-week period of growth, you really do, from that physical standpoint. Now, we’ve got enough – they’re paying attention, they’re in meetings and so you’re getting the mental side of this to where you can improve. ... But yeah, there is a piece that’s missing and they’re going to have to make it up in a hurry when we get into training camp."

Gibbs should split carries with David Montgomery this fall in one of the NFL's best two-headed backfields.

He ran for 945 yards and 10 touchdowns last season and had another 316 yards receiving, but the Lions want him to play a bigger role in the pass game in 2024 and missing organized team activities and this week's mandatory minicamp has cost him valuable reps on the route tree.

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Branch started at slot cornerback last fall and could man that position again this year, but Campbell said earlier this offseason he was intrigued by the thought of the second-year defensive back playing more safety.

Last year, the Lions gave Branch some time at safety after early-season injuries to C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Kerby Joseph, then scaled back his work at the position late in the season. Had he been healthy all spring, he would have gotten more practice time at the position with Amik Robertson and Ennis Rakestraw Jr. in nickel.

"Will it set them back?" Campbell said. "They can make this up, but certainly they’ve missed a piece of this."

Double duty for McNeill?

The Lions do not currently have a fullback on their roster, but that does not mean they're doing away with the position.

"We like a fullback, if it makes sense and it’s somebody we know can help us at that position and can dictate to the defense," Campbell said. "That’s really what you’re trying to do, and now it forces the defense into a look that you want, usually. But we’re not going to force it, either."

Linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez played 20 snaps of fullback last season, and the Lions used a sixth offensive lineman or backup tight end at the position at other times.

While those options remain in 2024, Campbell said the Lions have another potential William "Refrigerator" Perry-like fullback on their roster in defensive tackle Alim McNeill.

"Mac can do it," Campbell said. "It’s just a matter of, do you want to do that? He can do it. It’s just, 'All right, how many plays he just played on this last drive, was this a 10-play drive? Does he have his energy back to run out there at fullback?' We’ve talked about it for a while, so you never know, we can throw him in there."

McNeill, one of the NFL's best young defensive tackles at 6 feet 2 and 315 pounds, scored 40 career touchdowns as a short-yardage back in high school, according to his North Carolina State bio. Perry, a former defensive tackle for the Chicago Bears, famously played as a goal-line fullback in the 1980s.

"We’re not going to go out and go out and start looking through, scouring rosters and say 'let’s go find a fullback,'" Campbell said. "If the right guy shows or our right guy’s here, we’ll figure it out. If not, then we’ll use a tight end."

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on X and Instagram at @davebirkett.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions notes: Injuries costing Brian Branch, Jahmyr Gibbs growth