Lions sign K Michael Badgley to roster, elevate 2 practice squad WRs

The Detroit Lions have officially signed Michael Badgley to the active roster, while promoting two wideouts from the practice squad .

The Detroit Lions have finally signed kicker Michael Badgley to their 53-man roster on Saturday. Badgley, who was signed a couple of weeks ago, had served as the team’s kicker for the past two games, but he was elevated from the practice squad each time. With only one practice squad elevation left for Badgley, the Lions decided to forego that process and just make him part of the active roster.

Badgley was added after the Lions waived Austin Seibert, who announced on social media that he had re-torn both his abductor muscles and required surgery for the second straight season. Badgley never got the opportunity to kick in the Patriots game, but last week against the Dallas Cowboys, Badgley nailed two field goals, from 40 and 53 yards.

While special teams coordinator Dave Fipp came away obviously happy with the performance, he warned that Badgley needs to show he can be consistent—something the Lions have lacked at the position over the past two years.

“He did a good job in the game with the kicks and that’s been good and we obviously need to continue that trend going forward for sure,” Fipp said this week. “I would say there’s a lot left, I mean listen, let’s not jump on the bandwagon too early one way or the other. We’ll just continue to keep working hard and trying to improve and see where it goes from there.”

Additionally, the Lions elevated wide receivers Maurice Alexander and Stanley Berryhill from the practice squad. Alexander’s elevation comes as no surprise, as he’s the team’s primary kick returner, despite being signed and waived to the roster multiple times over the first two months of the season. This is Alexander’s second elevation of the season, meaning he can only be elevated one more time for the rest of the season.

The elevation of Berryhill is a bit more interesting. He was quietly signed to the Lions’ practice squad as Detroit came out of the bye week. An undrafted rookie out of Arizona, Berryhill has yet to make an NFL appearance, but as a Wildcat, he was a weapon all over the place as a senior. He caught 83 (!) passes for 744 yards, rushed 19 times for 121 yards, and returned 18 punts for an average of 8.7 per return. At 5-foot-11, 190 pounds, Berryhill fits Detroit’s preference for smaller, speedier options that can play in the slot.

So why was he elevated this week? The Lions are hurting at wide receiver, and even if Amon-Ra St. Brown plays (as expected), Detroit would only have four healthy receivers without any elevations. Alexander and Berryhill give them more options if they get in a pinch—remember, Josh Reynolds is still dealing with a knee injury but is expected to play—while also providing extra bodies for special teams.

The Lions also signed back rookie defensive tackle Demetrius Taylor to the practice squad. Taylor was on the 53-man roster all season but was waived earlier this week to make room for the eventual Badgley signing. Because he’ll be entering Sunday on the practice squad, he is not eligible to play vs. the Dolphins.

To recap:

Signed to the 53-man roster

• K Michael Badgley

Elevated from practice squad

• WR Maurice Alexander
• WR Stanley Berryhill

Signed to practice squad

• DT Demetrius Taylor