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The Detroit Lions re-signed Michael Badgley to a one-year deal at the end of February and I think everyone just sort of initially assumed that was that when it came to kicker for the Lions. As we pointed out that week, that probably wasn't that since the Lions had re-signed Badgley to a one-year deal the previous season and then still wound up trading for Riley Patterson later.
The point being the the search for a kicker continued. That's happening again this offseason although a trade for Riley Patterson is more than likely out the window this time. The Lions have been searching in the college ranks this time.
They've attended a lot of pro days so far this year and had a chance to see some kickers there, but there's one pro day that has me interested the most. That's the Stanford pro day on March 21st. The reason for that is because there was only one player there and that was kicker Joshua Karty.
#Jets (x2), #Lions, #Broncos, #49ers, #Dolphins, #Jags, #Steelers, #Commanders, #Browns, #Cardinals, #Vikings, #Texans, #Patriots in attendance (so far) at Stanford pro day, where the only participant is kicker Joshua Karty. Several teammates out here to show support pic.twitter.com/IN1MFP5Cjy
— Mike footballiance.com (@DraftMaverick) March 21, 2024
Karty is someone the Lions have already got to take a look at during the Senior Bowl. Now they get a more in depth look during his pro day. Maybe there's something there that they like about Karty.
Karty has a big leg and has nailed some big kicks while at Stanford. The biggest one being a 61-yard field goal against California in 2022. The Lions could use a guy like that.
This doesn't mean the Lions will draft a kicker. None of them are expected to get drafted this year despite there being some talented ones in the draft. They'll likely have to scramble after the seventh round to sign one as an undrafted free agent like many other teams will be doing. They could save a lot of time if they used a seventh-rounder on one though.
Either way, it's clear that the Lions have their eyes on kickers this offseason. Let's see what happens come camp time.
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