What to know about Riley Patterson, the Dolphins’ new kicker with Sanders out
The Dolphins are signing veteran Riley Patterson to their practice squad to fill in as the team’s kicker while Jason Sanders recovers from a hip injury.
The Dolphins auditioned four kickers on Tuesday, and Patterson was the most impressive of the group, which also included Zane Gonzalez, Eddy Pineiro and Greg Joseph.
Patterson will be elevated from the practice squad to the game day roster for the Sept. 7 opener at the Colts and potentially two additional games.
Because a team cannot elevate a single player more than three times in a season, the Dolphins will need to decide whether to sign Patterson to the 53-man roster after Week 3 or release him and bring in another kicker on the practice squad.
Sanders, who is on injured reserve, is not eligible to return until Week 5, health provided. The hip injury will sideline him four or five weeks, ESPN reported.
Undrafted out of Memphis in 2021, Patterson has kicked for Detroit, Jacksonville, Cleveland, the Jets and Atlanta.
He has made 63 of 74 career field goal attempts (including 4 for 7 for Atlanta last season) and 109 of 113 extra points.
He spent three games with the Falcons last season and one with the Browns but did not attempt a field goal during his Cleveland appearance.
He made the Lions as an undrafted rookie in 2021 and hit 13 of 14 field goals. In Week 15, Patterson converted all three field goals and all three extra points, earning NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
The Lions waived him in August 2022, and he joined the Jacksonville Jaguars and had a very good season, hitting 30 of 35 field goals. On January 14, 2023, Patterson kicked the game-winning field goal to help the Jaguars complete a 31–30 comeback win over the Chargers in a first-round playoff game, completing their third-biggest comeback victory in NFL postseason history.
After signing Brandon McManus, Jacksonville traded him back to Detroit in May 2023, and he hit 15 of 17 field goals for the Lions in 2023. But Patterson was inactive for a game on December 17, 2023, after missing two extra points in the previous three games. He was replaced by Michael Badgley and waived by the Jaguars Dec. 19.
Since then, he has bounced around to five different teams, including two stints with Atlanta. He hit a 52-yarder with the Falcons last season but missed a potential game winning 56-yard field goal in a Week 17 overtime loss to Washington.
For his career, Patterson is 16 for 20 on field goals of 40 to 49 yards and 4 for 9 on field goals of 50 yards or more. His career long is 53 yards.
Patterson, 25, is a native of Edwardsville, Illinois. He is a second cousin of Bills defensive end A.J. Epenesa.
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This story was originally published August 27, 2025 at 11:28 AM.
