Packers Should Envy NFL's Latest Lions Announcement
The Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions are going to square off in an NFC North tilt on Thursday Night Football in Week 14.
This will be a pivotal contest within the division race and a big-time battle on primetime. While that is the focus for both teams and fanbases, a Lion received an award ahead of the contest.
.@Lions K Jake Bates has been named the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month for November.
— Detroit Lions PR (@LionsPR) December 5, 2024
He's the first Lions kicker to win a POTM Award since Matt Prater in September of 2017.
He joins Prater (2) & Jason Hanson (5) as the only Lions kickers to win the award.#OnePride pic.twitter.com/FXGd6h5Sdm
According to the Detroit Lions PR X page, kicker Jake Bates has been named the NFC Special Teams Player of the month for November. Over five games in November, the 25-year-old went 8-of-9 on field goal attempts, including a perfect 3-of-3 on kicks from 50-plus yards away. In addition, he went a perfect 17-of-17 on extra-point attempts.
That must annoy Packer fans, as they had to deal with countless kicker troubles dating back to last season.
During training camp, Anders Carlson and Greg Joseph were competing for the starting kicker position but were both let go ahead of the season. That forced them to add Brayden Naverson. He appeared in six games in 2024, going 12-of-17 on field goal attempts. His struggles came from 40-49 yards away, where he went 5-of-9.
That forced the Packers to release Naverson on Oct. 16 and bring in Brandon McManus. Fortunately for them, the 33-year-old has been solid for Green Bay. Across six games this season, the Temple product has gone 10-of-11 on field goal attempts and 16-of-16 on extra point attempts.
Green Bay fans are hoping his solid play continues, as they've dealt with kicker problems since Mason Crosby left the team in 2022.
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