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Greg Zuerlein

Jets Sign K Austin Seibert To PS, Rule Out K Greg Zuerlein

September 16th, 2023 at 3:35pm CST by Ben Levine

3:35pm: An updated report informs that the move will reportedly be adding Seibert to the practice squad, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. He and linebacker Samuel Eguavoen will be called up from the taxi squad as gameday elevations for tomorrow’s game.

Wilson also reports that practice squad quarterback Tim Boyle will be signed to the active roster to serve as Zach Wilson‘s backup. The vacancy created on the practice squad by Boyle’s promotion will be the one filled by Seibert’s addition. In order to make room on the active roster for Boyle, wide receiver Irvin Charles has been waived.

1:53pm: With reports coming in from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, we can confirm that the Jets have officially downgraded Zuerlein to out for tomorrow’s matchup with the Cowboys. As most teams choose not to carry more than one kicker on their roster, this will require New York to make an addition to the team for tomorrow.

After a successful workout yesterday, Seibert has won the backup kicking job for the Jets, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. As mentioned below, Seibert is the most experienced of the three who tried out after spending his rookie season in 2019 making 86 percent of his kicks as the full time kicker for the Browns. He’s bounced around a bit since then and will now get a new opportunity in New York.

Even if Zuerlein is only out short-term, the job is a good opportunity for Seibert to showcase his in-game kicking abilities to other teams in the NFL who may be in need of a kicker down the line.

9:17am: With Greg Zuerlein questionable for tomorrow’s game against the Cowboys, the Jets were busy figuring out a contingency plan yesterday. According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the Jets worked out three kickers: Matthew Wright, Austin Seibert, and Caleb Shudak.

Seibert has the most experience of the bunch, with the former sixth-round pick getting into 30 games since 2019. Since appearing in 16 games a rookie, the kicker has bounced around the NFL, spending time with the Browns, Bengals, and Lions. He most recently got into three games for Detroit in 2022, connecting on three of his five field goal attempts and all 12 of his extra point tries.

Wright has seen time in 23 games, including a 2021 campaign where he appeared in 14 games for the Jaguars. He split the 2022 season between the Steelers and Chiefs, converting 12 of his 14 FG tries and all seven of his XPs. Shudak was busy during his lone NFL appearance, contributing 10 points during an appearance with the Titans in 2022.

Zuerlein suffered a groin injury during practice on Thursday, and Robert Saleh has declared the starting kicker 50/50 for tomorrow (per ESPN’s Rich Cimini). The head coach also acknowledged that the injury isn’t serious, so it sounds like the Jets may just need a one-week replacement at the position.

“Joe [Douglas] and the staff, they’re on it, to get all these kickers in for a workout to see which one would be best available come Sunday,” Saleh said (via Andrew Crane of the New York Post). “But gotta roll with the punches.”

Jets To Re-Sign K Greg Zuerlein

March 13th, 2023 at 5:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Jets will keep their kicker around for a second season. Greg Zuerlein is staying in the Big Apple on a new deal, according to Dianna Russini of ESPN.com (on Twitter).

This will be the Division II product’s 12th NFL season. Zuerlein, 35, made 81% of his field goal tries in 2022. The Jets brought in Zuerlein last year, and the ex-Rams and Cowboys specialist is now positioned to kick for what could well be a much higher-profile Jet squad in 2023.

The Cowboys cut Zuerlein at this time last year, ending a two-season partnership. Zuerlein caught on with the Jets on a one-year deal worth $2MM. That agreement looks to have stopped the revolving door that existed at this Jets position since the team let Jason Myers walk in 2019. Gang Green used eight kickers from 2019-21, including three apiece in both the 2020 and ’21 seasons.

While providing a reprieve from the kicker shuffling, the strong-legged specialist played all 17 Jets games and hit the third 60-plus-yard field goal of his career. That came when he nailed a 60-yarder — a Jets-record distance — against the Vikings in December. Zuerlein hit from 60-plus twice with the Rams, but the makes came back in their St. Louis days. The former sixth-round pick has not made more than 83% of his field goal tries since 2018, however.

Kicking Struggles In New York With Pineiro And Zuerlein

June 12th, 2022 at 6:10pm CST by Ely Allen

The Jets finished last in the AFC East last season. While they did rank 28th in offensive yardage in the league and finished dead last in yards allowed, they got no help from their kicking game as the team converted only 77.78% of its field goal attempts and 85.19% of its extra points. According to Connor Hughes at The Athletic, things haven’t looked much better for Gang Green this offseason. 

Last season saw the NFL debut of Oklahoma State undrafted kicker Matt Ammendola as he began the year as New York’s primary kicker. While he didn’t get a chance to score in Week 1, since the Jets went for two-point conversions on each of their two touchdowns, he did contribute with six punts for 291 total yards after starting punter Braden Mann sprained his knee after his first punt of the season. Ammendola would go on to man the kicking position for the first 12 weeks of the season, missing 1 of 15 extra points and converting 13 of 19 field goals along the way. He was perfect from 39 yards and in, but only 2 for 5 in the 40-49 yard range and missed all three attempts over 50 yards. After a rough two-week stretch that saw him miss 3 of 6 field goals, Ammendola was waived and placed on the practice squad after going unclaimed.

The Jets then brought in former Gators kicker Eddy Pineiro, who was the primary kicker for the entire season for the Bears two years ago. Pineiro added some stability to the kicking game, converting all eight of his field goals attempts but did miss one extra point. He even converted the Jets first and only 50+ yard field goal of the season in order to give the Jets a three-point lead over the Buccaneers going into halftime.

New York entered the offseason with Ammendola and Pineiro, but decided late into March that they wanted to bring in a veteran presence in Greg Zuerlein. Greg the Leg spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Rams, joining the Cowboys two years ago as Dallas’s primary kicker. Mr. the Leg has seen varying success throughout his career spanning from a 2015 season in which he missed a third of his kicks to a 2017 All-Pro season that saw his miss only 2 of an attempted 40. He is known as a kicker of great distance. Despite only converting 55.07% of his field goal attempts over 50 yards, his longest converted field goal of the season has routinely been above 54 yards, with two seasons entering into the 60+ yard range.

Three days after bringing in Zuerlein, New York waived Ammendola, leaving the kicking competition to be settled by Zuerlein or Pineiro. The Jets special teams coordinator Brant Boyer has described the race between the two as “tight,” claiming Pineiro and Zuerlein are “neck and neck.” Unfortunately, the competition is so close because neither kicker has made a strong case to be awarded the position over the other.

Boyer will have to make a decision at some point, but he’s likely hoping Pineiro or Zuerlein will make the decision for him by stepping up to take the role. Hughes posits that, like many past seasons for Gang Green, New York’s Week 1 kicker might not even be on the roster yet.

Jets Sign K Greg Zuerlein

March 26th, 2022 at 9:51am CST by Ben Levine

Greg the Leg has landed in the Big Apple. The Jets announced that they have signed veteran kicker Greg Zuerlein. It’s a one-year deal worth $2.75MM, according to Connor Hughes of The Athletic (via Twitter).

Zuerlein, 34, has managed to stick around the NFL for 10 seasons, coming into the league from a Division II school and playing eight years with the Rams. That included a 2017 campaign where the kicker earned All-Pro honors after converting 95 percent of his field goals (including six of seven from 50+) and 95.7 percent of his extra point tries.

Since that 2017 campaign, Zuerlein has converted only 81.4 percent of his field goals, and the 2021 season saw him miss a career-high six extra point attempts. As a result, the veteran was cut by the Cowboys earlier this month, saving the organization $2MM. According to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter), the veteran kicker had back surgery last offseason that “affected his swing,” so there’s some optimism Zuerlein can return to form in 2022.

The Jets relied on the duo of Eddy Pineiro and Matt Ammendola for kicking duties in 2021. The two players are still on the Jets roster, but their future outlook with the organization doesn’t look great following today’s transaction.

Cowboys Cut Greg Zuerlein, Blake Jarwin

March 11th, 2022 at 3:28pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Cowboys continue to make cost-cutting moves. They are saying goodbye to their kicker and one of their tight ends, releasing Greg Zuerlein and waiving Blake Jarwin with an injury designation. The team announced the moves.

One year remained on Zuerlein’s $7.5MM deal; this move will create just more than $2MM in cap space for the Cowboys. Jarwin is eligible for injury protection, but cutting him will add a bit to Dallas’ cap space as well. The Cowboys waived Jarwin with an injury designation.

Jarwin, who signed an extension to stay in Dallas in 2020, underwent a hip surgery that has his 2022 availability in question. The six-year veteran has missed 24 games since signing that four-year, $22MM deal. Jarwin tore an ACL in September 2020 and encountered this hip trouble last season. During that span, Dalton Schultz has taken over as the Cowboys’ primary tight end. The Cowboys franchise-tagged Schultz this week.

Zuerlein, 34, has managed to stick around in the NFL for 10 seasons, coming into the league from a Division II school and playing eight years with the Rams. He struggled in 2021, missing a career-high six extra points. While the strong-legged specialist will likely have another opportunity, he will need to find a third NFL team to continue his career.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/18/21

November 18th, 2021 at 1:37pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Thursday’s minor moves, with the list being updated throughout the day:

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

  • Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: RB John Kelly

Dallas Cowboys

Detroit Lions

Kansas City Chiefs

Minnesota Vikings

Pittsburgh Steelers

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/9/21

November 9th, 2021 at 6:45pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Los Angeles Rams

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

Cowboys Place Amari Cooper, DeMarcus Lawrence On PUP

July 22nd, 2021 at 12:05pm CST by Zachary Links

The Cowboys have placed wide receiver Amari Cooper and defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence on the Physically Unable to Perform list to begin training camp (Twitter link via Todd Archer of ESPN.com). Cooper is still recuperating from a lingering ankle issue while Lawrence has been hampered by back problems. 

Cooper, a seventh-year veteran, was previously scratched from Cowboys minicamp. He underwent minor ankle surgery in January but the latest trouble surfaced in May. The Pro Bowl wideout has been here before — a sprain cost him time in 2017 and reemerged in early last season. To date, Cooper has not missed a game as a Cowboy. But, if his recovery drags, they’ll be leaning more on Michael Gallup and CeeDee Lamb.

Lawrence nearly opted out last year, but ultimately went on to appear in all 16 games for the Cowboys with 6.5 sacks. Statistically, his best work came in 2017 and 2018 as he registered a combined 25 sacks. The Cowboys hope that he can quickly put his back (and shoulder) injuries behind him to resume his Pro Bowl form.

The stars will be joined on the list by kicker Greg Zuerlein (back), defensive tackle Trysten Hill (knee), newly-signed rookie defensive end Chauncey Golston (hamstring), and offensive tackle Mitch Hyatt (knee). The Cowboys will also place UDFA receiver T.J. Vasher on the non-football injury list as he works his way back from a knee injury suffered at Texas Tech.

Rams Cut Kickers Austin MacGinnis, Lirim Hajrullahu

September 4th, 2020 at 3:45pm CST by Sam Robinson

In a move that may or may not make the final episode of the latest Hard Knocks season, the Rams have decided on a kicker.

The team made the decision Friday to waive kickers Austin MacGinnis and Lirim Hajrullahu. This will leave Sam Sloman, a seventh-round pick out of Miami (Ohio) as Greg Zuerlein‘s successor.

Sloman separated from the other two competitors over the past week, per The Athletic’s Jourdan Rodrigue (on Twitter). Sloman made 87% of his field goals as a senior for the Redhawks last season.

The Rams signed MacGinnis and Hajrullahua as UDFAs this year. This will mark the first time since 2011 the Rams will head into a season without Zuerlein as their kicker. They opted to let the Pro Bowl specialist walk in free agency, when he signed with the Cowboys.

Contract Details: Zuerlein, Bills, Cardinals

March 31st, 2020 at 9:30pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are the latest details from the second wave of free agency. All links courtesy of the Houston Chronicle’s Aaron Wilson, unless otherwise noted.

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