It’s not often that kickers get selected in the NFL draft. Just one kicker has been selected in each of the last two seasons.
Michigan’s Jake Moody has a very good chance of earning a selection in 2023. The 2021 Groza Award winner as the nation’s best kicker has a big leg and made several clutch kicks for the Wolverines over his career.
Could Moody get selected by the Lions, his hometown team?
The Lions’ side of the equation is unknown, but Moody would certainly approve. He’s been a Lions fan his whole life.
When asked at the NFL Scouting Combine if he would like to play for the Lions, Moody quickly approved.
“Yeah. I grew up just down the road from Detroit,” Moody said. “I was a Lions fan growing up. That’d be pretty cool. It’s a plus they play indoors. It’s nice for a kicker. But I’m happy anywhere I end up.”
Moody wasn’t just a Lions fan. He was a big fan of Lions kickers Jason Hanson and Matt Prater.
“Yeah, I was a big Jason Hanson fan,” Moody said with a smile.
Moody even told a story about blowing off Hall of Fame wide receiver Calvin Johnson to get more time with Prater, who kicked for the Lions from 2014-2020.
“I grew up in Northfield, MI,” Moody said. “There was a local pizza place and my friends were texting me that Matt Prater and Calvin Johnson were at this pizza place in my hometown. So I threw on a coat, ran out the door, quickly got to the pizza place and I went straight for Matt Prater and only talked to him. It got to the point where Calvin Johnson had to like introduce himself to me because I wasn’t as interested in talking to him, I guess.”
The Lions haven’t drafted a kicker since Nate Freese in the seventh round of 2014. Freese very quickly gave way to Prater, and the rest was a happy history for Moody.
