Who Is Matt Prater and How Could He Save the Detroit Lions' Season?

The winding path to the present included two failed attempts and a brutally painful blown win, but the Detroit Lions have likely found the individual that will ensure the 2014 season isn't lost in the flames of a kicking situation gone awry. 

His name is Matt Prater, and he's perfectly capable of saving the Lions at kicker.

According to Tim Twentyman of the team's official site, the Lions signed Prater to a one-year deal Tuesday night, following a day's worth of tryouts that also included veterans Jay Feely and Connor Barth. Just five weeks into the season, Prater has already become Detroit's third kicker—and he'll now be tasked with cleaning up the mess left by rookie Nate Freese and former Philadelphia Eagles kicker Alex Henery, who both bombed their opportunities to hold down the job.

The Lions' struggles making field goals in 2014 are well documented.

Freese, who narrowly (and maybe unfairly, given his status as a seventh-round pick) beat out Giorgio Tavecchio in training camp, made just three of his seven kicks to start the season. His long was just 30 yards, and he missed all four of his attempts over 40 yards. The Lions cut him in favor of Henery after Week 3. 

Nothing changed. Despite once holding NCAA records for kicking accuracy and his 86 percent conversion rate in the NFL entering 2014, Henery was able to make just one of five attempts over two weeks in Detroit. His one make came from 51 yards out, but he also missed his four other attempts over 40 yards. 

The situation hit rock bottom last Sunday, when Henery missed all three of his kicks, including what would have been the game-winner with 21 seconds left. The Lions lost 17 seconds later, when Buffalo Bills kicker Dan Carpenter drained a 58-yard kick to give the Bills a 17-14 win in Detroit. 

	FGM-FGA	FGs 39 yards and in	FGs 40 yards or more
N. Freese	3-7	3-3	0-4
A. Henery	1-5	0-0	1-5
TOTAL	4-12*	3-3	1-9*

Through five weeks, the Lions have made just four of 12 field goals, including an 0-of-6 mark from 40-49 yards and 1-of-3 from 50 or more. In this golden age of kicking accuracy and kicking distance, both numbers are wholly unacceptable. 

Consider that among the 32 teams, only three have a field-goal-accuracy percentage of less than 75.0. Of the 28 teams that have attempted a field goal from 40-49 yards, 18 haven't missed a single kick. Only two teams—the Lions and Cincinnati Bengals—have missed more than one kick from 50 yards or more. 

Overall, NFL teams have made 85 percent of the kicks attempted this season. Meanwhile, Detroit's eight misses—the most from one team through five games since 1999—represent almost 20 percent of the league's total number of misses.

Chuck Burton/Associated Press

And while Henery's three misses Sunday erased what should have been a comfortable win for the Lions, it's easy to forget that Freese also missed two makable kicks in Carolina during the first half of an eventual 24-7 loss. Without the misses, Detroit would have likely entered the fourth quarter with the game tied at 13.

The Lions didn't play well enough in the final 15 minutes to win the game, but one can never really know how six points could have turned the game one way or another. Missed kicks can take the wind out of an offense's sails and flip momentum to the other side. 

So, instead of sitting pretty at 4-1, or even possibly as the lone undefeated team in football, the Lions are 3-2—just one of 15 teams with three wins at this point in the long season. 

A kicking savior was needed. 

"We've got to get a guy who is consistent under pressure and able to get us points on the board," head coach Jim Caldwell said Monday, via the team's official site. "In this league there's going to be close games, guys in that position's going to decide a number of games, and we've got to make certain we get the right guy for us."

Prater was the easy call. 

As a member of the Denver Broncos last season, Prater made 25 of 26 kicks and was named to the Pro Bowl. He was a perfect 8-of-8 on kicks 40 to 49 yards away, and 6-of-7 on kicks 50 yards or more. 

	FG Makes	FG Attempts	%
2007	1	4	25.0
2008	25	34	73.5
2009	30	35	85.7
2010	16	18	88.9
2011	19	25	76.9
2012	26	32	81.3
2013	25	26	96.2
TOTAL	142	174	81.6

The Broncos released Prater after he served a four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy. It was the lucky twist Detroit desperately needed. 

Prater certainly has a big leg. He's made 21 of 27 career kicks over 50 yards, which is the best mark in NFL history among kickers with at least 20 attempts, per Twentyman. His 64-yard make last December set the new NFL record. 

He's also clutch. Of the 54 career kicks he's attempted in the fourth quarter or overtime, Prater has made 51 (94.4 percent). His 11 postseason attempts have resulted in nine makes. Overall, Prater has made 15 kicks that have either tied the game or given his team a lead in the fourth quarter or overtime. 

The Lions' official site put together a look at Prater's 10 biggest kicks:

This Lions team, the first under the control of Caldwell, deserves more than to see a promising season ruined by a carousel of undependable kickers. 

While the offense is working through injuries and a scheme change under new offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi, the Lions defense is undoubtedly one of the best in football through the first five weeks of the season. Detroit is allowing the fewest yards and second fewest points per game this season, which has allowed the offense time to work out the wrinkles and sort through the absences. 

If the two pieces ever do work in harmony, the Lions will be a strong contender to win the division for the first time since 1993—a span of over 20 years. 

A kicker should never be the one to unravel such an opportunity. 

It took two tries and a lost win, but the Lions finally have peace of mind—in the form of 2013 Pro Bowl kicker Matt Prater—at a position that was threatening to send Detroit's season up in smoke. 

Zach Kruse covers the NFC North for Bleacher Report. 

Follow @zachkruse2