The Money Badger era in Los Angeles is over. The Chargers are cutting kicker Michael Badgley, a source told Tom Pelissero of NFL Network (Twitter link).
It appears that Tristan Vizcaino has won the competition to be Los Angeles’ starting kicker this season. A 2018 UDFA from Miami, Badgley had a lot of success as a rookie after he was signed by the Chargers midway through the year, and it initially looked like they’d found a diamond in the rough. He quickly became a fan favorite while making 15/16 field goals, including a 59-yarder.
In 2019 he missed eight games with an injury, and regressed a bit when on the field. This past season, he regressed a lot more. He struggled the whole season, making only 24 of 33 field goal attempts and 36 of 39 extra points. He missed some crucial kicks, including one at the end of regulation that would’ve given the Chargers a huge win over the Saints early in the season on Monday Night Football.
They went on to lose in overtime. Vizcaino was also a 2018 UDFA and he’s spent a lot of time on offseason rosters, but has only ever kicked in one regular season game. That came last year with the 49ers, when he made all three field goal attempts and both extra points.
The Lions need a kicker now having released both Bullock and Gonzalez.
Joey Slye
The Money Badger lost his source of income. Would that make him just ‘The Badger’ now?
The Lonely Badger?