The Detroit Lions escaped with a narrow victory while visiting the rival Minnesota Vikings in Week 7, pulling ahead 31–29 in the final moments of the fourth quarter courtesy of a late field goal from kicker Jake Bates.
Bates, who said after Sunday's game that he nearly gave up on football to become a brick salesman, delivered the game-winner from 44 yards out with just 15 seconds left in the game.
After the game, Dan Campbell was over the moon with joy, and he emphatically delivered the game ball to Bates in a fashion only he could.
I love this freakin' team pic.twitter.com/FzyaMG2uEt
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) October 21, 2024
"Alright. Hey, Mr. Bates! Where you at?" roared Campbell. "Where's Bates at? Get up here, Bates! Give the man his ball!"
Bates was grinning ear to ear as someone tossed him the game ball, and he went on to give a short speech in which he gave a shoutout to Detroit's offense.
"Hey, how about the offense getting us in position, man? With like a minute and a half left, getting down there, man. We trust you guys with everything. And then field goal line, I know that's like the worst job in the world. I really appreciate you guys," said Bates.
Since joining the Lions at the start of the season, Bates has been perfect in his first six games, making all six of his field goal attempts on the year. None were bigger than Sunday's which gave Detroit a win and the top spot in the NFC North.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Dan Campbell Was So Fired Up While Giving Lions Kicker Jake Bates the Game Ball.
