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The Detroit Lions had yet another new kicker on the field in Week 13, and rookie Riley Patterson’s debut was as good as any the team has seen at the position lately.
Patterson, getting a chance to stick on the roster for an injured Austin Seibert, went 3-3 on the day on field goals with a long of 49 yards. He was also perfect on extra points as well, proving what a valuable addition he could be for the roster moving forward.
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Even though the kicker looked cool as a cucumber in his first game, there was obviously some nerves bubbling below the surface for the player in his first NFL game as a member of a roster. As Patterson explained to the media on Monday, December 6 in an interview posted to DetroitLions.com, he did have a little bit of nerves, but was able to push through and deliver on the day.
“I think you get nervous for games. You’re the one out here, make or miss there’s a lot of stuff going on with the play, great snaps, great holds. But it eventually is on you and you want to do your best and put the ball through the uprights,” Patterson told the media. “I’m really glad we did. Kind of had a little bit of nerves bur thankfully we’re getting through that fist game, we made all our kicks. You kind of get going the rest of the season here and it’s been awesome.”
Awesome is certainly the operative word to describe Patterson’s performance in his first game, but also with regards to the opportunity he now has in Detroit.
Why Patterson Has a Shot to Stay With Lions
Detroit’s kicking game has been up in the air since the offseason, when the Lions let established veteran option Matt Prater walk. Prater may be aging, but he remained a consistent option for the team who was still very clutch at his kicking job for his old team. The Lions tried in vain to replace Prater with names such as Randy Bullock and Matthew Wright this past offseason, and when those players flopped, the team turned to Austin Seibert. When Seibert got hurt or couldn’t play, Ryan Santoso took over, but collapsed in Week 10. With the Lions hitting the reset button again following Garrick Rosas steadying the ship in Week 11, they made a move and elevated Patterson to the roster.
While Seibert could be seen as a quality young option for the team as well for 2022, it’s hard to ignore Patterson’s debut. Though he has some questions about accuracy from college, the youngster looked relatively unflappable in his first game. Between him and Seibert, there could be a quality kicking competition next season where the best young player could truthfully win. At this point, it’s impossible to say that Patterson won’t seize the opportunity he now has with Detroit. For now, Seibert is out of sight and out of mind, so Patterson will get a consistent crack at making a big roster impression for the team.
Patterson’s College Stats & Highlights
Coming into the league out of Memphis, Patterson is one of the more accurate kickers coming from college in terms of extra points. In a four-year career with the Tigers, Patterson missed just a total of six extra points, going 240-246 with the team, which is good for a 97.6% conversion rate. On kicks, however, is where Patterson has seen most of his problems in college. Over that same span, Patterson converted just 64-83 field goals, for a much lower 77.1% conversion rate. He fell apart in his senior season of 2020 with a shaky 68.2% conversion rate on kicks. Here’s a breakdown of Patterson which does show plenty of positives with his game:
Any potential past accuracy problems didn’t stop him from getting NFL looks, however, and Patterson does have decent accuracy in his past given his 92% conversion rate in 2019. That was the highest total for the kicker in his college career, which begs the question of whether it was an aberration or not.
So far, Patterson looked good with a small sample size. He’ll have a chance to improve upon that in the weeks ahead, and it might not be wise to count him out of staying as a result.
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Riley Patterson Being Given ‘Awesome’ Chance to Stick With Lions