Finding a kicker is the hardest thing the Lions will have to do this offseason
I really hate to bring you back in time to something that you're probably trying to forget, but the Detroit Lions were really missing something in the NFC Championship game. Something that could have potentially changed the course of their history. It wasn't a quarterback, it was a great offensive line and it wasn't a […]
I really hate to bring you back in time to something that you're probably trying to forget, but the Detroit Lions were really missing something in the NFC Championship game. Something that could have potentially changed the course of their history. It wasn't a quarterback, it was a great offensive line and it wasn't a dominant defense. It was kicker.
The Lions are an aggressive team. We all know that and we all know that their aggressiveness is one of the best things about them. It's one of the reasons they were able to get to the point that they got to. I think deep down we also know that some of that aggressiveness is necessary becasue the Lions haven't had a kicker that they can trust through this entire rebuild.
I know a lot of talking heads wanted the Lions to bring Michael Badgley out there for a 48-yard field goal that is suddenly a chip shot, but Badgley has only hit nine field goals for 48 and beyond in his entire career. That's out of 20 attempts. He's not reliable.
As I mentioned, this has been a problem for a while now. The Lions have cycled through 11 different kickers since Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes took the jobs in Detroit. Be prepared to be blasted in the face with kicker names.
- Matthew Wright
- Randy Bullock
- Zane Gonzalez
- Austin Seibert
- Ryan Santoso
- Riley Patterson
- Aldrick Rosas
- Dominik Eberle
- Sam Ficken
- Michael Badgley
- John Parker Romo
As they go into the offseason this year, they'll probably be adding more names to that list becasue they need to find someone. If the Lions had a guy that they could trust, maybe the Lions and 49ers are tied at 27 in the fourth quarter. Maybe the Lions go up 27-7 in the third. I realize that having a kicker doesn't stop the freak Kindle Vildor play that should have been an interception and it doesn't prevent Jahmyr Gibbs from fumbling. It also doesn't prevent the Lions defense allowing points on the board. But it might have allowed the Lions to stay in the game.
Why is this a problem in Detroit? Why can't they just find the right guy? Here's the thing, this is incredibly hard to do and the Lions aren't alone. It felt like there was a time that the NFL was just full of kickers and everyone had a reliable one. Those days are over. Everyone is struggling with this.
Of all 32 teams, only 19 of them walked into the 2023 season with the same kicker that they had in the 2022 season. That's just walking in mind you. Some of those 19 teams made changes at the position during the season. Only a handful of those teams have also had the same guy for more than two years.
So what can the Lions do? They can possibly draft one. Keep in mind that this is like hitting the lottery. All draft picks are, but kickers are like the Powerball. You either get a guy that's awesome and plays for your team for a decade or you're the team that drafted Roberto Aguayo in the second round and are letting him walk after one year. That's incredibly rare. I feel like I can promise you that the Lions won't take a kicker in the second round this April. Don't worry about that.
That's an extreme situation. The point is the same though. You can draft a guy in any round and he either works or you're moving on super quick.
There's also free agency. There's some attractive names that are set to hit the open market this offseason. Texans kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn is at the top of the list. He hit 96.4% of his field goals this season. The Texans aren't likely to just let him walk though. Bucs kicker Chase McLaughlin is an option too. He hit on 93.5% of his kicks and the Lions are a team that has a better chance of winning it all next season. Maybe they can lure him over.
Whatever they do, they can't keep cycling back and forth between Michael Badgley and Riley Patterson anymore. They need someone that they can rely on. But it's going to be hardest thing they do this offseason.
The pros and cons of the Lions bringing back C.J. Gardner-Johnson
For the earlier part of February, we'll be looking at some of the Lions free agents who's potential of coming back to Detroit seems up in the air right now. We'll be doing these as pros and cons pieces. So far we've covered Jonah Jackson. Today we cover C.J. Gardner-Johnson. Pros Gardner-Johnson had an immediate […]
