The Detroit Lions had a fun one against the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday. It was a preseason game, but there was some good drama and the Lions walked out with a 24-23 win. That wasn’t all that happened, three guys locked up a spot on the Lions 53-man roster. Let’s talk about it.
Kindle Vildor
This one just feels so right. Everyone will remember the horrible NFC Championship incident where the ball bounced off his facemask and into the hands of Brandon Aiyuk. That really overshadowed that he had a pretty good couple of months in Detroit.
This summer he’s been working hard and some injuries in the cornerback room gave him a chance to step into a role with the first team and he could not have handled it better than he did. He was breaking up passes, causing turnovers and getting stops in camp. Then on Saturday he was great in coverage and broke up passes. He locked up a spot for sure and don’t be surprised if you see him flexing in during the season.
Jake Bates
What a turnaround it has been for this guy. Lions fans really don’t want to believe it, but Bates struggled down the stretch of the UFL season and then struggled even harder for the first three weeks of training camp. The Lions still stuck with him and after he hit that 53-yard kick in the rain against the Giants, that might have been the moment of confidence that he needed.
He followed it up with a really solid week of practice and then nailed thee field goals on Saturday, including a 43-yard walk off game winner. He still needs a little work with his accuracy because he missed that PAT and that was definitely not the first one he’s missed this summer, but he’s got the job and over time he can start to be more consistent. We could be looking at a Pro Bowl kicker if he does.
James Houston
Wait, James Houston didn’t even play in this game. Well, that’s the reason why he earned the spot. Things have been going back and forth with him all summer long and it felt like the Lions taking SAM linebacker duties off his plate was a bad thing.
Now it seems as though the Lions recognize that he can be an asset as someone who can set the edge and that’s good enough to get him on the roster.