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With Riley Patterson struggling, Detroit Lions activate K Michael Badgley vs. Broncos
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- With Riley Patterson struggling, Detroit Lions activate K Michael Badgley vs. Broncos
The Detroit Lions appear to be making a change, at least temporarily, at kicker.
The Lions elevated kicker Michael Badgley and pass rusher Bruce Irvin from their practice squad to the gameday roster for tonight's game against the Denver Broncos .
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Badgley has not appeared in a game this season, while Patterson has missed extra points in two of the Lions' past three games.
Detroit Lions kicker Michael Badgley (17) attempts a field goal against the Buffalo Bills during the second half at Ford Field in Detroit on Thursday, Nov. 24, 2022.
Patterson is 15 of 17 on field goals this season, with one make of more than 50 yards, and 35 of 37 on PATs. He missed an extra point in last week's loss to the Chicago Bears after a bad snap by Jake McQuaide .
Lions special teams coordinator Dave Fipp downplayed Patterson's misses this week.
"I think he's sitting at like 94 percent," Fipp said. "I would love to tell you it was 100. I think 94 is kind of around average. I'm not saying that's good and I'm not saying that's what we're shooting for, but ultimately, there is some reality out there that you'd love these guys to all be perfect, but they're not – all of them aren't. But yeah, at the end of the day, obviously we're striving for better than that for sure."
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Badgley, meanwhile, made 20 of 24 field goals for the Lions last season.
Irvin had a sack in his Lions' debut in the team's 33-28 win over the New Orleans Saints earlier this month, but sat out last week's game in part because of an ankle injury.
He played with Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson for parts of five seasons with the Seattle Seahawks .
Players can be elevated three times from the practice squad before they have to be activated to the 53-man roster.
Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com . Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Lions activate kicker Michael Badgley, Bruce Irvin vs. Broncos
