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One of the most positive developments of the Detroit Lions’ 2021 season has been the emergence of young players. In multiple levels, Detroit has found players who can be building blocks for the future.
Kicker Riley Patterson has become another such player for the team, and while he has been tying history at kicker, he finally got to make some of his own by remaining consistent.
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Early in Week 16 against Atlanta, Patterson booted a 26 yard field goal to help Detroit take a 3-0 lead in the game. It was the eighth straight kick he has converted in his Detroit career, which is a brad new record for the team that Patterson will keep himself. The Lions PR account tweeted the record.
This new record is quite impressive for the Lions being that the team has had tons of good kickers through the years like Eddie Murray, Jason Hanson and most recently Matt Prater. Only Patterson, though, remains perfect through his first eight kicks of his career and that will be so into the future.
Patterson Not Fazed With Early Pressure
Speaking to the media on Wednesday, December 22 in an interview posted to DetroitLions.com, Patterson explained that he is adjusting well to his surroundings and has appreciated the city and the teammates he has found since coming to Detroit.
As for any of the pressure he has dealt with, it hasn’t been able to shake a player who is truthfully appreciating his surroundings on the field.
“I love playing, that’s awesome. I love playing with a team that wats to win. This team I feel like really wants to win. So it’s fun to be a part of a team that is really trying to accomplish a goal,” Patterson said. “For me to be able to do my small little part in that tam effort, it’s pretty cool. There’s pressure that comes along with it, but having faith in myself and faith in my abilities that God gave me to get here is how I deal with that.”
So far, so good for Patterson, who has been a rock thus far and has been perfect as a kicker for the Lions. That’s been huge as he has adjusted to his new city and he has been solid.
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 looks good in Detroit and has made some history in the process. He’s answering any potential questions about his accuracy in a big way.
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