In myriad ways, the 24-year-old Joseph was recognized as the best at his position.

Those aforementioned nine interceptions led the league.

Joseph was then voted to The Associated Press All-Pro team and was also a member of the Next Gen Stats All-Pro squad. Furthermore, Pro Football Focus rated him as the top safety, garnering a 90.4 grade.

Yet, the third-year standout didn’t get his first career Pro Bowl career nod, solidifying snub status instead.

“Honesty, I don’t really have an issue with it. How it all shaped out … it’s not unexpected that that happened,” Joseph said. “I kinda already knew something was gonna happen with that. I don’t have no issue with the Pro Bowl, honestly. It’s a great event, it’s also great for the fans and stuff. Shoutout to the guys that made the Pro Bowl. It just wasn’t my year, that’s fine. I wasn’t really trying to go to the Pro Bowl this year, anyway, I wanted the Super Bowl, so it’s cool.”

Joseph opining that getting snubbed wasn’t unexpected raised an eyebrow and a follow-up from Rome, but the Lions standout didn’t delve into the issue.

His career’s not gone without controversy as he’s delivered hits that have injured Los Angeles Rams tight end Tyler Higbee and Minnesota Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson. Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft has also been vocal about his dislike for the Detroit ballhawk.

Perhaps a bad reputation kept Joseph out of the Pro Bowl Games, but that’s only speculation for a process determined by votes from fans, players and coaches.

Regardless of why Joseph was left off the NFC Pro Bowl roster, he knows he should’ve been on it.

“You see the stats,” he said.

He’s unfazed by it and moving on, just as he and the Lions will do after an outstanding 15-2 regular season went bust with a Divisional Round exit.

As part of a defense that was staggered by injuries, though, Joseph is still taking positives from a what-if 2024 campaign.

“We went through a lot of adversity, especially on defense; we had a lot of injuries and stuff like that,” he said. “Like I said it in training camp, I told the whole team, I told the whole DB group, ‘Man, it’s going to take all of us to win.’ We went as far as we could. And we had an amazing season. I feel like I grew as a person, I grew with my leadership skills and my communication skills.”

His reputation as perhaps the top safety in the league also grew, even if a Pro Bowl selection escaped him.