Why Lions don't need to see LaPorta, Branch play before finalizing extensions

The Detroit Lions don't necessarily need to see how Brian Branch and Sam LaPorta look in their return to the field from season-ending injuries before signing them to long-term contract extensions. As Lions president Rod Wood said during a pre-NFL Draft event Thursday, April 16, for the Detroit Economic Club, the team hopes to sign all four its top 2023 draft picks to extensions this offseason. He compared Branch and LaPorta's situation to what the Lions went through with Aidan Hutchinson a year ago.

"They’re all going to be in the building soon," Wood said. "Guys start showing up next week, so once we get an assessment of how they’re doing, it doesn’t mean they have to play before we would do an extension. We had a similar situation with Hutch a couple years ago, with him coming off his injury, and we were in active discussions with him beginning in training camp but it took some time because it’s a big deal.

"These may take time cause they’re big deals, not because of the injury. But we’ll look at their health and that’ll be factored into how we approach it but the plan is now to try and keep all these guys that we’ve drafted. " YOU DON'T KNOW, JACK: Why Jack Campbell's contract extension could be extra tricky Hutchinson, the Lions' first-round pick in 2022, signed a four-year, $180 million extension last October a little more than a year after he broke the tibia and fibula in his left leg.

He started all 17 games last season and had a career-high 14½ sacks. Both Branch and LaPorta underwent season-ending surgeries last year; their status for the start of training camp is unknown. Branch tore the Achilles tendon in his right leg Dec.