There will be no reunion between the Detroit Lions and kicker Riley Patterson.
On Tuesday, the Jacksonville Jaguars waived kicker Riley Patterson. When that happened, most of the Detroit Lions fandom took notice. The Lions had to recently place Michael Badgley on injured reserve , and Patterson had spent time on and off the Lions’ roster every year since 2021. In 20 game appearances for Detroit, he made 28-of-31 field goals and 51-of-53 extra points.
Alas, a reunion is not in the cards this time around. Per the transaction wire, the Washington Commanders were awarded Patterson off of waivers. It’s not known at this time whether the Lions put in a waiver claim for Patterson, but even if they had, Washington has a higher waiver priority than Detroit. Waiver priority is currently determined by 2023 standings. The Commanders have second priority after finishing with the second-worst record last year, while the Lions are 29th in priority after making the NFC Championship .
The Lions still do have Jake Bates as their primary kicker right now, but Detroit has shown an interest in adding competition to the former UFL star. Last week, the Lions tried out four different kickers but opted not to sign any of them. Coach Dan Campbell indicated they’re interested in adding a kicker, but they’re not going to force it.
“It’s something that (general manager) Brad (Holmes) and I are talking about right now, but we’re not in a hurry either,” Campbell said. “(If) we find the right guy that helps us for competition, then for camp, then we’ll do that.”
It’s worth noting that former Lions kicker James Turner—who spent OTAs with the team—was waived by the Packers on Tuesday and went unclaimed.