As they fill out their practice squad, the Detroit Lions have brought back kicker Aldrick Rosas.
For a big chunk of last season, the Detroit Lions went through placekickers faster than any team wants to, due to performance, injuries etc. Aldrick Rosas was among them, kicking in one game–making his lone field goal attempt as well as his only extra point.
When the Lions were awarded defensive lineman John Cominsky off waivers this offseason, they waived Rosas in the corresponding move. That narrowed their kicker competition to Austin Seibert and Riley Patterson before training camp. Seibert got the nod at the final cutdown to 53 players, and Patterson was claimed off waivers by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
On Thursday morning, with three spots to fill there, the Lions brought Rosas back on the practice squad.
Aldrick Rosas worth carrying on Lions’ practice squad as contingency plan
As Justin Rogers of The Detroit News alluded to, perhaps in light of how the situation at the position played out for the Lions last season, it makes a lot of sense to carry a kicker on a 16-man practice squad.
With 16-man practice squads, never hurts to have an emergency plan for a specialist. https://t.co/VECUvplxvc
— Justin Rogers (@Justin_Rogers) September 1, 2022
For his career, kicking in 59 games with the New York Giants (48 games), Jacksonville Jaguars, New Orleans Saints and the Lions, Rosas has a 79.1 percent success rate on field goals (72-for-91) with a long of 57 yards. He’s 117-for-119 on extra points for his career.
Rosas’ best season came with the Giants in 2018, when he went 32-for-33 on field goals (the miss was from 50-plus yards out) and 31-for-32 on extra points on his way to earning a Pro Bowl selection.
Rosas may not be the last familiar face who winds up back with the Lions on the practice squad. Quarterback David Blough and running back Jermar Jefferson were waived over the course of Wednesday’s business, and if they clear waivers it’s very likely they are both brought back.