Training camp and cutdowns are over, but that doesn’t mean you’re guaranteed a spot on the 53-man roster all year long. The Detroit Lions showed us last season that they make changes nearly every week of the season and that includes releasing players that you didn’t think would get released. Not everyone is safe right now.
It’s the first game of the season and if there were ever a time to move on from a guy during the year, it’s right now. That’s why these three guys need to go out and have big games on Sunday night to lock down their spots for the year. Here’s who’s on notice:
Jake Bates
Bates has the job right now, but everyone noticed the misses during the preseason and the misses at camp were defintley noticed too. We already know that Lions GM Brad Holmes said last week that the team would look for a veteran kicker to add to the practice squad, but now we also know that Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp is talking about having patience with him.
This isn’t to say he’s gone if he misses a kick Sunday. I mean if he misses all of them, then yeah. But if there are still some issues, the Lions may look to add that veteran kicker and have him hold the job while they work with Bates. There’s no doubt they like him, but are they willing to risk it if his inaccuracies continue?
The Lions might have to be one of those teams that rosters two kickers at the same time because you can’t waive Bates without losing him to the waiver wire.
James Houston
Houston made the team after an up and down summer, but his spot doesn’t feel like it’s cemented in. The ups of the summer was a good performance in the final preseason game, but the downs were the team giving up on a three year project with him and having the worst performance in the first preseason game. It was already a hard decision for the team to make to begin with.
The Lions spent a lot of the summer talking about wanting guys that can do more than one thing and now it’s like they’re saying it’s ok that Houston can do one thing, but he better go out there and do it well. I keep coming back to this quote from Campbell when I think about Houston and what he needs to do on Sunday.
“The more you can do, if he can play the SAM linebacker, or certainly a backup linebacker, and he can rush as a defensive end, and he can play some some special teams, well, he’s a lock to go to the game. Like there is no question. But if you’re a one trick pony and you’re okay at that, but you really can’t do this, and you’re not really playing special teams, then, you know, what do we do with it? You know, then he’s just a backup that’s not going to the game. We’re gonna hope that you know, well you got him if somebody gets hurt, and then it’s, is that good enough? So it’s just, it’s always going to be that way. The more you can do your value goes up.”
Houston making a few plays on Sunday is going to be huge for him. If he fades into the background, that could be the beginning of the end.
Tim Patrick
This one is a little different. The Lions will probably bring Patrick along slowly, but it would be shocking if he doesn’t play this first game. With that said, the Lions aren’t married to the idea of him being the guy. If they were he’d be filling in that empty spot on the roster right now. Maybe he will on Saturday, but it seems unlikely.
So if Patrick goes out there in his Lions debut, which will probably be as a practice squad elevation, and drops a pass or two or doesn’t get open or what have you, that’s not going to help.
I’m not saying he has to have a 100 yard game and a touchdown, just make a play or two and you’re all set.