HEADLINES

Chase McLaughlin

AFC Notes: Colts, Pats, Bills, Adams, Green

December 4th, 2019 at 9:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

Adam Vinatieri landed on the Colts‘ injury report Wednesday, and NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero notes the 24th-year kicker went through an MRI after practice (Twitter link). Despite the scrutiny that’s come due to his poor performance, Vinatieri has kicked in every Colts game this season. But doubt exists about his Sunday status, leading Indianapolis to claim ex-Charger and 49er Chase McLaughlin. Vinatieri is planning to meet with Colts brass Thursday about the next course of action, per Pelissero. Considering his performance and teams not traditionally big on carrying two kickers, it seems IR could be a possibility for the NFL’s all-time scoring kingpin.

Midway through the Week 14 lead-up, let’s take a look at the latest coming out of the AFC. Additional kicker uncertainty exists within this conference.

  • Both the Bills and Patriots attempted to claim McLaughlin, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. New England is without a kicker presently and has used four this season. Kai Forbath replaced Nick Folk, with the latter undergoing an emergency appendectomy, but the Pats cut the former this week. Folk would seem the likely option, but the Pats were prepared to make McLaughlin their fifth 2019 kicker. The Bills made McLaughlin a priority UDFA signing in May but waived him after the preseason. Stephen Hauschka has missed four field goals over the past six Bills games.
  • T.Y. Hilton acknowledged the possibility he will not play again this season. The Colts‘ top skill-position talent re-injured his calf last week and missed Week 13. He did not practice Wednesday. “I’m doing everything I can to get back out there,” Hilton said, via Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan. “If I can, I can. If I can’t, then I’m going to have to shut it down, but I’m doing everything I can (to return).” Hilton has missed five games this season; the Colts are 1-4 in those contests.
  • Jamal Adams will likely miss the Jets‘ Week 14 game, per Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. The Pro Bowl safety suffered a sprained ankle in Gang Green’s loss in Cincinnati. Adams has not missed a game as a pro.
  • The A.J. Green refrain continues. Zac Taylor said Wednesday he does not expect the Pro Bowl wideout will not return for Week 14. The Bengals have played the entire season without Green, a 2020 free agent-to-be. Given a recent positive progress report, the 31-year-old receiver remains out. A full redshirt season may spook some potential suitors in free agency, but Green returning to a 1-11 Bengals team and suffering another setback would probably affect his market more.

Colts Claim K Chase McLaughlin

December 4th, 2019 at 4:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Colts currently have two kickers on their roster. They claimed rookie Chase McLaughlin off waivers from the 49ers, calling Adam Vinatieri‘s status into question.

To make room on their 53-man roster, the Colts waived tight end Matt Lengel. McLaughlin served as a replacement kicker for both the Chargers and 49ers this season. The latter waived him Tuesday.

Vinatieri has trudged through a brutal season and is now on the Colts’ injury report with a knee issue. He made it through a limited practice Wednesday. Considering Vinatieri’s injury- and performance-related concerns, McLaughlin looks set to kick for a third team this season.

In his 14th year with the Colts, Vinatieri has missed eight field goals and six extra points. The future Hall of Famer’s ineffectiveness has undoubtedly affected Indianapolis’ position in the standings. The 46-year-old specialist missed two kicks in Week 13, with one being blocked and returned for a touchdown.

The 24th-year veteran resisted an early-season retirement but has not found the rhythm from prior seasons. His 68% connect rate is the worst of his career, so it will be interesting to see if the Colts carry two kickers into their Week 14 game.

McLaughlin has made 13 of 17 field goals, with all four misses coming from between 40-49 yards, and was successful on all 15 of his extra point tries. The 23-year-old Illinois alum made the only 50-yard kick he’s attempted as a pro.

Minor NFL Transactions: 12/3/19

December 3rd, 2019 at 4:32pm CST by Zachary Links

We’ll keep track of today’s minor NFL moves here:

Arizona Cardinals

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

  • Claimed: C Patrick Morris (from Steelers)

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

  • Promote TE Kendall Blanton
  • Placed on IR: WR JoJo Natson

Miami Dolphins

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

49ers To Sign K Chase McLaughlin

November 7th, 2019 at 10:38am CST by Dallas Robinson

49ers kicker Robbie Gould suffered a strained quad that could sideline for him Monday night’s game against the Seahawks, so San Francisco is signing fellow kicker Chase McLaughlin, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter links). Gould’s injury is not long-term in nature, per RapSheet, but it could affect his availability for Week 10.

Gould, 36, posted arguably the best season of his career in 2018, converting a league-leading 97.1% of his field goal attempts. He made both of his attempts from 50+ yards, and missed only two extra points. Tagged as a franchise player before agreeing to a four-year extension, Gould’s production has declined this year, as he’s already missed seven field goal attempts in 20 tries.

McLaughlin, meanwhile, is an undrafted rookie free agent who spent time with the Bills before serving as the Chargers’ kicker for the month of October. Playing in relief of the injured Michael Badgley, McLaughlin made six-of-nine field goal attempts and converted all seven of his extra point tries.

NFL Workout Updates: 11/1/19

November 1st, 2019 at 8:41pm CST by Marc Delucchi

The latest from the workout circuit around the league:

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Jacksonville Jaguars

New York Jets

Oakland Raiders

Chargers Waive K Chase McLaughlin

October 29th, 2019 at 4:51pm CST by Marc Delucchi

The Chargers waived kicker Chase McLaughlin, according to Sirius XM Radio’s Adam Caplan. Los Angeles signed McLaughlin back in October to fill in for Michael Badgley while he was dealing with a groin injury. Given that no reports have emerged tying the Chargers to another kicker, it seems likely to expect Badgley to return to the field.

Originally, the Chargers had their punter, Ty Long, handle both punting and kicking duties to start the season. Through four games, Long was 7 of 9 on field goals and 9 of 9 on extra points, but after their Week 4 victory against the Dolphins he appeared to come up limping. While Long has continued handling punting duties, McLaughlin stepped in over the past four weeks and maintained similar success.

McLaughlin, a rookie, served as the kicker for Illinois from 2016-2018. After going undrafted, he signed with the Bills as an undrafted free agent. He quickly was released in Buffalo and then caught on with Minnesota’s practice squad before being released once again before catching on in Los Angeles.

In his four games as the Chargers kicker, McLaughlin handled kickoff duties, made 6 of 9 field goal attempts and was 7 of 7 on extra points. McLaughlin did make a field goal from beyond 5o yards but also missed three of his four attempts between 40 and 49 yards.

Badgley, in his second season out of Miami, was one of the most accurate kickers as a rookie in 2018. Last season, over 10 games, he made 15 of 16 field goal attempts with just one miss on 28 PAT tries.

Chargers Sign K Chase McLaughlin

October 1st, 2019 at 7:47pm CST by Ben Levine

With Michael Badgley still ailing, the Chargers have added another kicker. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports (via Twitter) that Los Angeles has signed rookie Chase McLaughlin.

Badgley has missed his team’s first four games as he recovers from a groin injury. As Pelissero notes, the 24-year-old recently suffered a setback that will keep him on the shelf for several more weeks. Punter Ty Long has filled in for the first month of the season, and he’s been solid through four games; the 26-year-old has converted seven of his nine field goal attempts and all nine of his extra point tries.

Long was caught limping during Sunday’s win over the Dolphins. The Chargers presumably don’t want to suffer another special teams injury, and with Badgley out longer than expected, the front office finally decided to add a kicker.

In comes McLaughlin, an undrafted rookie out of Illinois. The former walk-on ended up having a standout college career, earning a Bakken-Anderson Big Ten Kicker of the Year award and a First-Team All-Big Ten nod. He was waived by the Bills at the end of the preseason before catching on with the Vikings practice squad. He was cut by Minnesota in mid-September, and he’s had a single workout (with the Colts) since that time. The 23-year-old will presumably make his NFL debut against the Broncos this weekend.

Colts Hold Kicker Workout

September 17th, 2019 at 4:58pm CST by Sam Robinson

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.

Bills Reach 53-Man Max

August 31st, 2019 at 4:10pm CST by Zachary Links

The Bills dropped a host of players on Saturday to reach the 53-man limit, but they also carved out spots by other means. Fifth-round linebacker Vosean Joseph (shoulder) and running back Senorise Perry (quad) were placed on IR while undrafted linebacker Tyrell Dodson was placed on the Commissioner’s exempt list.

Here’s the full list of cut players in Buffalo:

DE Sam Acho
TE Nate Becker
WR Victor Bolden Jr.
TE Kyle Carter
S Kurt Coleman
WR Nick Easley
DE Jeff Holland
QB Tyree Jackson
OT Jarron Jones
LB Deon Lacey
CB Cam Lewis
CB Ryan Lewis
OL Eric Magnuson
WR Ray-Ray McCloud
RB LeSean McCoy
K Chase McLaughlin
CB Captain Munnerlyn
RB Marcus Murphy
DT Kyle Peko
WR Cam Phillips
CB Lafayette Pitts
OL Demetrius Rhaney
CB Denzel Rice
WR David Sills
TE Keith Towbridge
RB Christian Wade
S Abraham Wallace
DT L.T. Walton
WR Duke Williams
DE Eddie Yarbrough
DT Roderick Young

Bills Sign Cody Ford, Five Other Draft Picks, Eight UDFAs

May 9th, 2019 at 5:42pm CST by Dallas Robinson

After signing first-round pick Ed Oliver earlier today, the Bills have signed six more draft picks and eight undrafted free agents.

Draft Picks

Ford, whom many teams had earmarked as a Day 1 selection, will give the Bills options along their revamped offensive line. He’s capable of playing either guard or tackle, so Buffalo can deploy the Oklahoma product in any number of ways. Singletary, meanwhile, becomes yet another new running back on the Bills’ roster, joining T.J. Yeldon and Frank Gore. LeSean McCoy, therefore, could potentially either become trade bait or be released.

UDFAs

Jackson was widely expected to be drafted, but he was instead able to choose his destination and remain close to home. He received $75K guaranteed on his deal with the Bills, tweets Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.