More than once last year, veteran kicker David Akers had 49ers fans saying “Good grief.”
But the now-Lions kicker said part of the reason for his inaccuracy was a Peanuts-style injury that happened during a rainy practice early last season.
“I fell at practice on a kickoff,” Akers said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “It was pouring down rain in San Fran and we had new turf, and I did a full-on Charlie Brown. So I swung through, I was feeling great, and like I came back, landed on my shoulder, leg smacked my face mask, was kind of jarred. And I felt OK that day and then just the next day kind of built up.
“You lean on the doctors, you lean on the training staff, and the way I look at it is you just keep climbing, you take each and every day, feel comfortable each game trying more and more different things. Ultimately, it comes down if I’m the guy they want to have here, I’d love to be here and I’m trying to do the best I can for these guys.”
Akers is competing with trick-shot artist Havard Rugland in Detroit, and after a pair of offseason surgeries, looks solid. He was 5-of-5 in practice Monday, hitting from 54 and 63 yards.
If he can stay that consistent, he’ll provide quite a security blanket for the Lions this year.