Detroit Lions claim WR KhaDarel Hodge, K Austin Seibert

The Detroit Lions will have two new members to their 53-man squad. Per the transaction wire, the Lions have been awarded two players on the waiver wire: kicker Austin Seibert and wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge.

Seibert served as the Browns starting kicker in 2019, after then-GM John Dorsey (now with the Lions as senior personnel executive) drafted him in the fifth round. He had a pretty decent rookie season, making 25-of-29 field goals, including 9-of-12 from 40+ yards but just 1-of-2 from 50+. But after missing a field goal and an extra point in the Browns’ season opener last year, he was cut from the team.

The Bengals claimed him off waivers and he proceeded to make 6-of-9 kicks with Cincinnati. This preseason, he lost the kicker battle with the Bengals to Evan McPherson.

Seibert doesn’t have a lot of experience kicking over 50+ yards, but he was pretty accurate in college, making 79.7 percent of his kicks for Oklahoma.

As for KhaDarel Hodge, he found himself cut in a crowded Browns wide receiver room. Undrafted out of Prairie View A&M in 2018, his first team was... the Los Angeles Rams, where current Lions general manager Brad Holmes likely had a hand in his acquisition. He ended up playing in 14 games for the Rams that year—mostly on special teams—but did catch two passes for 17 yards from Jared Goff.

Last year with the Browns, Hodge pulled in 11 catches for 180 yards in nine games played. His best game came in Week 11 when he had 73 yards on just three catches against the Eagles.

At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, Hodge has a chance to contribute immediately in Detroit. Obviously, the Lions have familiarity with him through Holmes and Goff, and their receiver room is up for grabs after free agent signing Breshad Perriman did not work out and was cut earlier this week. The Lions also traded for Trinity Benson this week to add more competition to the room.

With these two additions, the Lions will have to create two roster spots to fit them on the 53. One expected move is to place quarterback Tim Boyle on injured reserve after thumb surgery that will have him sidelined for 6-8 weeks.