4 potential landing spots for former Lions kicker Michael Badgley

The Lions fairly surprisingly parted ways with kicker Michael Badgley on Thursday, so where could he find his next opportunity?

Rey Del Rio/GettyImages
3 of 3
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

2. Minnesota Vikings

Adam Patrick of FanSided's The Viking Age quickly made the case for the Vikings to consider adding Badgley right after the Lions let him go. Incumbent Greg Joseph is begging to be replaced, especially after he missed a total of 13 kicks last season. But Minnesota still re-signed him.

Patrick made a solid case for Badgley to be brought it to compete with Joseph, while noting how the former Lions' kicker should have some demand for his services.

"This is a decision that has to be made quickly though. The Vikings likely can't just wait and see if Joseph struggles this summer because there's a good chance that Badgley is already going to have a new team by the start of the regular season."
Adam Patrick, The Viking Age

Lions fans might not like the idea of Badgley landing with a division rival, as much as a kicker would land in that field of worry. But the Vikings make a lot of sense for Badgley, and they probably should've signed him like yesterday.

1. Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys easily, at least on theory, moved on from Brett Maher after his struggles in a playoff game. Until he was signed by the Denver Broncos on Friday, he made some sense as a candidate
for the Lions to replace Badgley

The kickers currently on the Cowboys' roster are Tristan Vizcaino and Brandon Aubrey. It's ok to not be impressed.

Vizcaino kicked in three games for two teams last year (Arizona and New England), and he has 12 NFL regular season field goal attempts on his resume. Aubrey kicked for the Birmingham Stallions in the USFL over the last two years, and his soccer background led to him being taken in the 2017 MLS draft. Aubrey has gotten a couple previous chances with NFL teams, but he has not stuck.

The Cowboys are ripe to add an experienced kicker at some point, maybe very soon as training camp gets going. They've passed on more notable available guys up to this point, like Robbie Gould, Ryan Succop and Mason Crosby, which points to being content with the situation after adding Aubrey.

But Badgley lands as someone who may make better sense for Dallas as a more experienced kicking option, now that he's available.