The Lions have had their fair share of headlines concerning their kicking game already this year. First, incumbent kicker Michael Badgley was placed on injured reserve with a season-ending hamstring injury. To replace him, Detroit enlisted UFL-star Jake Bates, whose big leg gained him notoriety throughout the offseason. 
Well, today, the Lions signed veteran kicker Greg Joseph to their practice squad, per Joseph’s agent Brett Tessler. The South Africa native has been in the league for the last five years, spending the last three of those in Minnesota as the Vikings’ primary kicker. As a free agent in the offseason, Joseph signed with the Packers but didn’t make the team’s 53-man roster as a result of an expansive kicking competition. Now, he joins his third-consecutive NFC North club.
The Lions had decided on Bates as their main leg after a kicker competition of their own. Throughout training camp, Bates showed an inconsistency that seemed troublesome at the time, but when it came gametime in the preseason and Week 1, Bates got back to the performances that earned him his NFL opportunity.
Still, last year, we saw Detroit actively recruit Badgley and eventually utilize him to replace Riley Patterson midseason. While Bates has a secure hold on the job for now, there’s nothing in Detroit’s recent history to suggest that they won’t continue to make Bates earn his job throughout the season. He’ll likely have to hold Joseph at bay with his own performance all season.
Making his way around the NFC North
Dan Campbell LOVES himself some Jake Bates. He’s NEVER talked about a kicker the way he has Bates since preseason, and that includes a long list of names from Siebert to Riley to Badgely and a half dozen practice squad guys in between. Not only that, but he’s shown an increased willingness to kick in preseason and game 1. The job is Bates’, that simple. It will take injury or a MASSIVE meltdown, like an 0 for 8 on FG type stretch, for Joseph to see the field.
Nothing wrong with depth at any position – in fact it’s quite wise