ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes is hopeful standout safeties Kerby Joseph and Brian Branch along with backup running back Isiah Pacheco will be healthy enough to play this season.
Holmes said on Wednesday that he did not want to share a timetable for each player's potential return.
Joseph played in just six games last season with a knee injury that has lingered and limited him to working out with the team's training staff this summer. He was All-Pro in 2024 and signed an $86 million, four-year deal before the 2025 season that makes him one of the NFL’s highest-paid safeties.
Branch tore his left Achilles tendon last December and like Joseph, he works out with trainers while the team practices. He finished fifth in voting for Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2023 and earned Pro Bowl recognition in his second season.
Pacheco was put on injured reserve Tuesday with a back injury, which added to a sprained knee ligament that he was also recovering from during training camp.
Detroit opens the season at home on Sept. 13 against New Orleans.
The Lions signed Pacheco to a $1.81 million, one-year contract as a free agent, planning for him back up three-time Pro Bowl running back Jahmyr Gibbs after trading veteran David Montgomery to Houston.
Pacheco accounted for more than 3,000 yards of offense and scored 17 touchdowns over the previous three seasons and started in seven playoff games for the Kansas City Chiefs, helping them win two Super Bowls. Injuries limited him to 20 regular season games the last two years.
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Detroit Lions assistant general manager Ray Agnew, left, and general manager Brad Holmes, right, speak to the media at the NFL football team's training facility, in Allen Park, Mich., Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes listens to a question from the media at the NFL football team's training facility, in Allen Park, Mich., Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose on Wall Street Wednesday as steady oil prices and bond yields relieve some pressure.
The S&P 500 index rose 0.6%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 421 points, or 0.8%, as of 10:52 a.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite rose 0.3%.
The gains follow two weak days for the broader market as it came under pressure from rising oil prices and a bond-market sell-off.
Banks had some of the strongest gains. JPMorgan Chase rose 1.7% and Bank of America rose 2.4%.
Elsewhere, Dell Technologies rose 3.7% following an encouraging financial update.
Oil prices held relatively steady despite the intensification in the six-month long U.S. war with Iran. The U.S. attacked sites in Iran over the weekend, ending a lull in major hostilities and Iran has since retaliated against sites around the Gulf region.
Prices for Brent crude, the international standard, rose 0.2% to $94.83 a barrel. Energy stocks were mixed. Chevron edged 0.4% higher after confirming it will expand operations in Venezuela.
A surge in oil prices following the start of the U.S. war with Iran fueled a jump in gasoline prices and global shipping costs. The conflict shut down the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil is typically shipped.
Higher energy costs worsened inflation that was already stubbornly high amid a volatile U.S. tariff war with much of the world.
Inflation has been squeezing businesses and households at the same time that the mostly resilient jobs market shows signs of weakening. Payrolls processing firm ADP reported that private-sector employment slipped in August, according to its monthly survey. It is just a small snapshot, though, of the broader labor market and follows a government report on Tuesday that showed U.S. job openings rose in July.
The big focus this week will be the government’s broader employment report for August, which will be released Friday. The previous report for July showed that the jobs market stalled, with employers cutting positions.
Both inflation and the jobs market have been key focuses for Wall Street and the Federal Reserve.
The Fed is trying to balance its task of supporting employment and taming inflation. Wall Street expects the central bank to raise interest rates before the year ends in an effort to cool inflation, which remains well above 3%. The Fed has a stated goal of cooling inflation to a target of 2%.
The bond market has been selling off, which is a signal that it expects borrowing costs to rise.
The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which tends to impact mortgage rates, rose slightly to 4.80% from 4.79% late Tuesday. It has been rising steadily throughout the year and was as low as 4.20% at the beginning of 2026.
The yield on the 2-year Treasury, which closely tracks expectations for Federal Reserve moves on interest rates, held steady at 4.39% from late Tuesday. It is significantly higher for the year, though, and was as low as 3.50% at the beginning of 2026.
Investors are also betting on a 66% chance that the Fed will raise rates at its upcoming meeting in September.
The Fed’s position is growing more complicated. Raising the benchmark interest rate would help cool inflation by making borrowing costs higher and slowing the economy. Doing so, though, could also hurt the employment market at a time when it is seemingly already weakening.
Specialists Dilip Patel works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Specialist Michael Pistillo works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 31, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 31, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
