Commanders Release K Matt Gay

Matt Gay‘s struggles continued on Sunday. The veteran kicker’s time in the nation’s capital has come to an end as a result.

Gay was released on Monday, per a Commanders announcement. He will now hit the waiver wire. In the likely event no claims are made, the 31-year-old will become a free agent. Based on how the 2025 season has gone, it will be interesting to see how much interest Gay generates.

“The performance, you’ve got to have it,” head coach Dan Quinn said of the decision to move on (via ESPN’s John Keim). “We wanted it to work long term with Matt. It wasn’t [about] one game.”

Gay has played in 10 of the Commanders’ 11 games this season. Over that span, he connected on just 13 of 19 attempts. Five of his misses came from beyond 50 yards, including two during yesterday’s game against the Dolphins. Washington wound up losing that contest 16-13 in overtime. Moving forward, the team will be in the market for a kicker addition to close out the season.

A Pro Bowler in 2021, Gay enjoyed a strong run during his time with the Rams and Colts. Accuracy from short range (including extra points) has been a consistent positive in his case, but long-distance field goals have remained an issue at every stop during his career. Gay’s overall success rate on tries beyond 50 yards sits at just 59.2%.

Recent years have seen a massive uptick in the range for many kickers around the league, and as such an ability to consistently convert from 50 yards (or well beyond) has increasingly become the expectation for NFL teams. With that in mind, Gay may struggle to generate a market among potential suitors for the remainder of the year as well as the coming offseason.