Nate Freese

The Lions elected not to re-sign David Akers following his lone season in Detroit, instead drafting Freese in the seventh round and bringing aboard street free agent Giorgio Tavecchio to compete for the kicking gig. Freese ended up claiming the vacancy after nailing 38-of-40 field goal attempts during his final two seasons at Boston College. He didn’t demonstrate much ability from distance in college, but Freese’s impressive accuracy might prove more meaningful than leg strength in the NFC North’s unforgiving late-season road environments. The domed confines of Ford Field should only accentuate Freese’s proficiency, while the kicker could also build on Akers’ total of 42 PATs if the offense can improve upon the league’s second-worst turnover rate.