When punter Sam Martin takes the field with his Detroit Lions teammates on Sunday night, it will be the first time he has done so this season. At least with his uniform and pads on.
Martin, who missed the first six games of the season with a foot injury, was activated by the Lions on Friday from the non-football injury list and he will make his season debut on Sunday Night Football against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
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The injury to Martin’s foot, which took place in the offseason, has been quite the mystery as neither he nor the Lions have shed any light about how it happened. Instead, rumors have swirled around about how Martin was injured, including a popular take that it happened while he was skateboarding.
On Saturday, Martin spoke to the Detroit Free Press about the injury and about the make-believe stories about how it took place.
“It wasn’t me being an idiot, it wasn’t me being stupid,” Martin said. “It had nothing to do with … cliff diving, chasing (my dog) Leo, skateboarding. What the hell else did I hear? It’s comical. That’s probably all you’re going to get. It was not any type of debauchery. It was nothing irresponsible. It was a freak accident. That’s the extent of it.”
Though he did not reveal exactly how the injury happened, Martin made it clear that it was an accident.
Martin also made sure to give major credit to Jeff Locke, who assumed the punting duties for the Lions while he was on the shelf.
“He did a great job when he was here, which made these last six weeks easier on myself having to worry about that position, me kind of leaving the team hanging type thing,” Martin said. “But he did great and I’m excited to see what comes about for him.”
