Despite Adam Vinatieri not opting to retire, the Colts held a kicker audition. The team worked out Cody Parkey, Elliott Fry and Younghoe Koo, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. This workout occurred today, after Vinatieri decided not to retire, NFL reporter Howard Balzer tweets. Also part of the audition: Greg Joseph, Chase McLaughlin and Cole Hedlund, per Balzer.
None of these kickers has signed with Indianapolis yet, but the 1-1 team is doing due diligence in light of Vinatieri’s rough start to the season.
Parkey worked out for the Jets recently, but Gang Green went with a Kaare Vedvik waiver claim instead. They now have Sam Ficken at kicker. Parkey has not kicked in a game since his infamous double-doink sequence ended the 2018 Bears’ season, but he has five seasons’ experience.
Koo has also participated in workouts but has not kicked since some late-game misses cost him his Chargers job early in 2017. A South Carolina alum, Fry has yet to kick in an NFL game. Neither has Hedlund, who kicked at Arkansas and North Texas. Joseph served as the Browns’ kicker last season, taking Zane Gonzalez‘s job in September 2018. He did not win Cleveland’s kicking competition this year. McLaughlin did not make the Bills out of camp. He kicked at the University of Illinois from 2015-18.
This is not yet an ominous sign for Vinatieri, but the 46-year-old kicking icon may now be on notice. The future Hall of Famer may be kicking for his job in Week 3.
Let Carli Lloyd kick!
She would be crap right now. She needs to practice the technique. I bet she would do pretty good with some practice though.
I wouldn’t waste time conducting any kicker workouts inside a dome stadium because sooner or later the guy you choose is going to have to make clutch kicks in unfavorable weather conditions.
they hold them at the team facility not at the stadium.
Anton Lubchenko!
Give the guy who stood outside of the Jets stadium a try out! His kicking video alone shows that he has the skills to kick in the NFL…the guy was splitting the uprights from 70 yards away!
#gohawks
Still feel bad for Parkey. He had one bad year and now nobody wants to touch him.