Why the Detroit Lions should replace Michael Badgley as their free agent in 2024……….
Greetings and welcome to another installment of the Detroit Lions free agent profiles series for the 2023–2024 season. Today, I’m going to be focusing on the problematic kicker position, where the team currently has only Michael Badgley. Since the end of the 2020 season, Detroit has struggled at this position, and they still haven’t figured out who their main option is going forward. Let’s examine the arguments for and against letting Badgley walk.
In 2023, Badgley re-signed with the Lions to serve as their kicker following a very successful 2022 campaign. But they did bring in some opposition. After a stellar season in the XFL, they signed big-legged John Parker Romo, and Detroit also acquired Riley Patterson through trade.
Real position in 2023
Season-long — four matches, four starts: field goal attempts: 4 for 4, longest coming from 41 yards out. 13 out of 15 while trying for extra points
Playoffs: 3 for 3 on field goal tries, longest from 54 yards out; 2 games, 2 starts. 11 out of 11 attempts at extra points.
For Badgley, the season was an emotional roller coaster. Four months after re-signing with the team, he was dismissed in July without even making it to the Lions training camp. He signed with and was cut by the Tennessee Titans and Washington Commanders before returning to the Lions to work on the practice squad.
In the midst of the season, Badgley defeated Riley Patterson in a practice-based competition that lasted for many weeks. In the end, he accepted the initialProspects for 2024: Unrestricted free agent; contract status
Why Detroit needs to release Badgley
Kicker is the one position that front office staff and general manager Brad Holmes are having trouble understanding. Since 2021, they have had a number of kickers on the roster; in fact, they released one, traded for him for the next season, and then released him again. Legendary kicker Jason Hanson was a gift to the Lions for 21 seasons. After a difficult search for a replacement, the team was fortunate to sign Matt Prater for seven seasons. Following his departure, the role is once more undefined.
Badgley has played for Detroit twice, in 2022 and 2023. Neither of those seasons was very good, but neither was particularly bad either. Dan Campbell, the head coach of the Lions, is a combative,
This season, Badgley excelled at field goals, missing only four in his four attempts. However, he struggled with extra points, missing two and blocking one. It’s reasonable for a kicker to miss field goals, particularly when they’re long distance away, but even with this farther kick, extra points shouldn’t be lost. Badgley lacks the leg the team needs, and the Super Bowl saw three kicks that went over 50 yards, setting a new record for the longest kick in game history at 57 yards. It demonstrates how big-legged kickers may contribute to a team’s championship success.
The Lions community debated the San Francisco 49ers game, believing the team would have been better off kicking field goals rather than taking a chance on a fourth down. Some uttered the word Badgley.
Are both parties interested in this?
If you are a kicker and you can play, practice squad or start for any team, you will take any job on any team. Either Detroit selects a kicker in the draft or they bring back Badgley in free agency and recruit a veteran to compete against him in training camp.
I don’t see the Lions giving up on Badgley and resigning him. There will be competition between him and another member of the team if he returns. One month after being cut by Detroit, Badgley was brought back by the team, and he was willing to rejoin the one that had let him go. Though it seems like both sides like one another, I don’tRegarding Michael Badgley, what should the Lions do in your opinion?
