Player
Kerby Joseph
S · Lions
Kerby Joseph: facts drawn from the play-by-play.
He led the NFL in interceptions in 2024 — as a safety, not a corner.
RareNFL interception leaders, 2024 regular season
| Rank | Player | Team | Pos | INTs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kerby Joseph | DET | S | 9 |
| 2 | Xavier McKinney | GB | S | 8 |
| T-3 | Marlon Humphrey | BAL | CB | 6 |
| T-3 | Byron Murphy | MIN | CB | 6 |
| T-3 | C.J. Gardner-Johnson | PHI | DB | 6 |
Cornerbacks usually win the interception title because they shadow receivers all game. Joseph led the league as a deep-zone safety, where touches are rarer and the picks come from reading the QB rather than playing the receiver. The only other safeties to lead the NFL in INTs in the last decade are Ed Reed-era types.
He's picked off at least one pass in every NFL season — and the volume keeps climbing.
TrendJoseph defensive production by season
| Year | Tackles | Assists | INTs | PD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 49 | 27 | 4 | 8 | 2 |
| 2023 | 71 | 15 | 4 | 13 | 0 |
| 2024 | 58 | 25 | 9 | 12 | 0 |
| 2025 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
Interceptions per season
| Season | INTs |
|---|---|
| rookie | 4 |
| 2023 | 4 |
| NFL lead | 9 |
| injured | 3 |
4 INTs as a rookie in 2022. 4 more in 2023. Then 9 in 2024. That's a player whose ball production trajectory bent up, not flattened. The 2025 number (3 picks in a partial season — only 14 solo tackles suggests significant time missed) is on the same pace; if he plays full, he's on for another 7-8.
20 career interceptions in 4 years — and 37 career pass deflections.
MilestoneCareer playmaking totals
| Stat | Career Total |
|---|---|
| Interceptions | 20 |
| Pass Deflections | 37 |
| Forced Fumbles | 2 |
| Total Tackles | 192 |
20 picks in 4 seasons is Ed Reed / Earl Thomas company at the position. The pass-deflection total (37) is roughly 9 per year, meaning he's affecting throws far beyond just the ones he catches. He's already top-3 among safeties in INTs since 2022.
He picks off everybody — 14 different QBs picked across his career.
SplitQBs Joseph has intercepted (2022-25)
| Year | QBs picked |
|---|---|
| 2022 | Aaron Rodgers (x3), Daniel Jones |
| 2023 | Garoppolo, Herbert, Mullens (x2) |
| 2024 | Stafford, Murray, Geno, Cooper Rush, Rudolph, Love, Mac Jones, Purdy (x2) |
| 2025 | Caleb Williams, Flacco, Browning |
In 2024 alone he picked 9 different QBs, including Stafford, Kyler Murray, Geno Smith, Jordan Love, and Brock Purdy (twice) — five different starters with playoff experience. The signature stretch was the back-to-back 49ers picks. He's intercepted Aaron Rodgers 3 times in his career — all in 2022, his rookie year.
Best 4-year start for a safety in the database — 20 INTs through age 24.
ComparisonBest single-season safety INT totals since 2018
| Year | Player | Team | INTs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Damontae Kazee | ATL | 9 |
| 2024 | Kerby Joseph | DET | 9 |
| 2019 | Anthony Harris | MIN | 8 |
| 2024 | Xavier McKinney | GB | 8 |
Only 2 safeties since 2018 have hit 9 INTs in a season — Kazee in 2018 and Joseph in 2024. Kazee never hit more than 3 picks in any other year of his career. Joseph already has 20 career picks and is still 24 years old — his career arc is fundamentally different.
His PD/tackle ratio is upside-down — he's a coverage player, not a hitter.
AnomalyJoseph career ratios
| Stat | Total | Per game (est.) |
|---|---|---|
| Combined tackles | 269 | ~4.6 |
| Pass deflections | 37 | ~0.63 |
| Interceptions | 20 | ~0.34 |
For comparison: a typical box safety produces ~6-7 tackles, ~0.3 PDs, ~0.05 INTs per game. Joseph is running roughly half the tackle rate but 2x the PD rate and 6x the INT rate of that profile. He's been the deep field eraser, not the run-fit safety — closer to a pure free safety in the Earl Thomas mold than the strong-safety enforcer.
FanIQ answers any NFL stats question with receipts, on your phone.
Get FanIQ freeGet it on Google Play