As the 53-man roster and the practice squad was being formed, Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes hinted at adding a kicker to the practice squad. Having someone with more experience than Jake Bates around makes sense.
"We’ll still look at adding another kicker to the practice squad,” Holmes said. “Guy that had a little bit more experience.”
That more experienced kicker has apparently been found. According to his agent Brett Tessler, the Lions are signing Greg Joseph to their practice squad.
Joseph entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2018, and after a stint with the Miami Dolphins he ended up with the Cleveland Browns. He kicked in 14 games for them that year as a rookie, going 17-of-20 on field goals (11-for-11 from 20-39 yards out). He was beaten out by Austin Seibert the following year, eventually kicking in two games for the Tennessee Titans during the 2019 season.
After being on the Buccaneer's' practice squad in 2020, Joseph landed with the Minnesota Vikings. Over three seasons (2021-2023) there, he made 83 of 101 field goals (82.2 percent), with a long of 61 yards and 50 of 51 makes from less than 40 yards out.
During his career, Joseph is 16-for-28 from 50-plus yards out (15-for-26 during his time with the Vikings).
Greg Joseph adds another leg to NFC North tour on Lions' practice squad
Joseph signed with the Green Bay Packers this offseason, winning a lackluster kicking competition with Anders Carlson. But he was let got the next day, as Green Bay pivoted to rookie Brayden Narveson after roster cuts.
The Lions bringing in someone of Joseph's ilk on the practice squad has been expected, and it has no bearing on Jake Bates' job security. He has rewarded the Lions' patience with him, going 2-for-2 on field goals in the season opener, including a game-tying field goal in the final minute to send the game to overtime. Joseph will just be around as a fallback option if things go awry, assuming another team doesn't eventually try to poach him off their practice squad.