A closer look at the five kickers the Patriots brought in for workouts
September 10, 2018; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders kicker Mike Nugent (6) kicks a field goal out of the hold by punter Johnny Townsend (5) against the Los Angeles Rams during the second quarter at Oakland Coliseum. (Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports)
By Ty Anderson, 985TheSportsHub.com
The Patriots had more than a pair of kickers in for a workout on Wednesday, as the team worked out kickers Kai Forbath, Elliott Fry, Mike Nugent, Blair Walsh and Matthew Wright, Patriots worked out kickers Kai Forbath, Elliott Fry, Mike Nugent, Blair Walsh and Matthew Wright
The workouts come on the heels of the team moving Stephen Gostkowski to the injured reserve, and with the 35-year-old Gostkowski set to undergo season-ending hip surgery, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Speaking to the long-term stability at the position, whoever the Patriots end up signing will be just the fourth different kicker in the Bill Belichick Era of Patriots Football, joining a list that features Adam Vinatieri, Gostkowski, and 2010 midseason fill-in Shayne Graham.
Here’s a closer look at the options they brought in to Gillette Stadium on Wednesday…
Kai Forbath
Forbath came to Foxborough after making four of his five kicks with the Jaguars last year, and with a resume that includes makes on 120-of-140 field goal attempts in a seven-year NFL career spent with the Redskins, Saints, Vikings, and Jags.
The 32-year-old Forbath was last a full-time NFLer in 2017, which saw him convert on 32 of 38 attempts (84.2 percent), and hammer 88 kickoffs in 16 games for Minnesota. One thing potentially working in Forbath’s favor when it comes to a job in New England? His experience (and success) kicking in chilly weather. With some slight experience in the cold thanks to his time in Minnesota and Washington, Forbath has a stat line featuring makes on all but of 15 attempts in temps 40 degrees or colder, and with a perfect 5-for-5 line on cold-weather field goals from 40 yards and back.
Elliott Fry
The 24-year-old Fry spent the 2019 preseason with the Bears, converting on a 43-yard attempt and missing on a 47-yarder, and making both of his extra-point attempts. Before his summer with the Bears, Fry kicked for the Orlando Apollos of the now-defunct AAF, where he went a perfect 14-for-14, with his longest make coming from 47 yards.
Mike Nugent
The oldest kicker among the group of five, the 37-year-old Nugent has 14 years of NFL experience to his name. Opportunities have been few and far between for Nugent over the last few years, though, as he’s appeared in just 11 games between the Bears, Cowboys, and Raiders since the start of the 2017 NFL season.
It’s worth mentioning that Nugent has been relatively steady over that stretch, however, with makes on 17-of-19 attempts, including a 6-for-6 mark in three games with Oakland last year before a hip injury put him on the shelf.
Like Forbath, Nugent has been relatively reliable in colder conditions (he played with both the Jets and Bengals), with makes on 32 of his 39 attempts in temperatures under 40 degrees. But Nugent has undoubtedly struggled when kicking in windy conditions, with a 78.9 percent success rate in such conditions (60-for-76 in his career).
Nugent has made seven of his eight field goal attempts in the postseason.
And another thing to like about Nugent? He’s 40-for-45 in his career in game situations considered “late and close.”
Blair Walsh
If Walsh’s name is familiar to you, it’s probably for all the wrong reasons, as the 29-year-old is most famous for what was one of the worst playoff misses in NFL history, with a 27-yard shank in the final minute of a 2016 wild card game against Seattle.
Walsh would go on to make 12 of his next 16 field goal attempts with the Vikings before the team officially moved on from him, and Walsh made 21-of-29 field goals in a 2017 season spent with the Seahawks. Walsh appeared in one game for the Falcons in the 2019 preseason, making one of his two field goal attempts before failing to make the team’s 53-man roster.
Matthew Wright
An undrafted kicker out of UCF, the 23-year-old Wright spent the 2019 preseason with the Steelers. Wright made five of his six field goal attempts with the Steelers, but missed one of his four extra-point attempts over his four-game run with Pittsburgh.
