NFL

Lions K Michael Badgley Suffers Season-Ending Hamstring Tear

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Published26 Jul 2024

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Detroit Lions K Kicker Michael Badgley Suffers Season-Ending Hamstring Tear

Detroit Lions kicker Michael Badgley will miss the 2024 NFL season after suffering a hamstring tear during Thursday’s practice, a source informed ESPN’s Adam Schefter. It was described as a “significant injury.”

Detroit Lions kicker Michael Badgley missed only two field goals inside of 40 yards last season

Detroit will place the 5-foot-10, 183-pound kicker on injured reserve, and he is expected to undergo surgery. Badgley, who turns 29 this Sunday, went undrafted in 2018 out of the University of Miami (FL).

“We feel awful for Badge,” said Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “He worked his tail off to get ready for this season. He was having a good spring and was ready for camp. It’s tough.”

Through six seasons, Badgley is 56-of-58 (96.6%) on field goal attempts inside of 40 yards and 98-of-119 (82.4%) overall. He’s also 168-of-175 (96%) on extra points, according to Pro-Football-Reference.

Badgley was re-signed by Detroit in February after converting all seven of his field goal attempts in the 2023 regular season and postseason. He was named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week in Week 13 of the 2022 season.

Detroit will now rely on Jake Bates, the former UFL kicker who signed a two-year contract in the offseason. The Lions have already hosted a workout for other kickers, but they seem content with their current roster.

“If we find the right guy that helps us for competition for camp, then we’ll do that,” Campbell said.

Jake Bates kicked a 64-yard game-winning field goal in the UFL’s Week 1 opener last season

Bates, 24, signed with the Houston Texans on July 31, 2023, after going undrafted in last year’s draft. However, the Texans released him almost two weeks later on Aug. 12.

In December 2023, he signed with the UFL’s Michigan Panthers. Bates ranked second in the UFL this past season with 17 field goals for the Panthers out of 22 attempts (77.2%).

The 5-foot-10, 202-pound Bates made a 64-yard game-winning field goal in the season opener against the St. Louis Battlehawks, just two yards less than Justin Tucker’s NFL record of 66.

The ball Bates kicked on the 64-yard field goal is on display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of its “Pro Football Today” exhibit. He was also named to the 2024 All-UFL team on June 5.

Per Pro-Football-Reference, the Lions ranked 11th in field goal percentage (90.5%), sixth in extra points made (48), and fourth in extra points attempted (52) last season.