Former Vikings Kicker Heads to Another Enemy
He did it again.
Former Vikings Kicker Heads to Another Enemy
Former Minnesota Vikings kicker Greg Joseph signed with the Green Bay Packers in May, almost won the main kicking job but lost to an unknown undrafted free agent named Brayden Narveson, and is now signing with a different NFC North team — the Detroit Lions.
Agent Brett Tessler tweeted Tuesday, “The Detroit Lions just signed my kicker Greg Joseph to their practice squad. 7-year vet was last with Green Bay and spent three prior seasons with the Minnesota Vikings.”
Joseph will now become the first line of defense at kicker if incumbent specialist Jake Bates falters or gets injured.
The new Lion played for Minnesota in the last three seasons, securing the kicker job longer than most amid the last decade of Vikings football. Joseph racked up five game-winning field goals in 2022 — you read that right: five — a chief component in actionizing the Vikings’ NFL-record-setting 11-0 record in games decided by one score or less that season. Minnesota’s kicker won five football games for the team notoriously snakebitten by kicker-related tomfoolery.
Yet, in back-to-back seasons, 2022 and 2023, Joseph ranked as a bottom-six NFL kicker per overall field goal percentage. The man also struggled with extra points. Vikings fans “appreciated what they had” in Joseph, jaded from kickers of yesteryear who let them down in crucial, pressure-cooked moments. But as a matter of improvement, Minnesota strived to find a kicker who could do it all: consistently hit game-winning kicks, normal ones, and drill extra points.
So, the Vikings drafted coveted Alabama kicker Will Reichard in April, who has performed wonderfully since his arrival, especially at training camp and in the preseason. Reichard was perfect for the Vikings in Week 1, albeit for just extra-point duty, as his team downed the New York Giants, 28-6.
Bates, the aforementioned Lions kicker, was flawless too, connecting on two field goals and two extra points in a Sunday Night Football triumph over the Los Angeles Rams.
This stat is the main reason that the Vikings preferred a new solution in Reichard:
Greg Joseph,
Field Goal % Ranking,
Last 2 Seasons:
2022 = 28th
2023 = 28th
Joseph’s Lions host the hot Tampa Bay Buccaneers this weekend at Ford Field, while the Vikings take on the San Francisco 49ers at home. Detroit is favored by a touchdown over Tampa Bay, and San Francisco has a six-point advantage, per oddsmakers, over Minnesota.
In 2021, Joseph notably beat the Lions with his own foot, knocking off Detroit in the infamous Kirk Cousins + Mike Zimmer “shove game.”
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Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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