NFL Player News
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Brandon McManus K | GB
Jaguars' Brandon McManus: Perfect in season finale
McManus made both field-goal attempts and both PATs against the Titans in Week 18. He played in all 17 games and went 30-for-37 on field goals and 35-for-35 on PATs.
The 32-year-old tied a career high with 125 points, and it was the first time since 2018 he didn't miss an extra point. Five of McManus' misses came from beyond 50 yards, with the other two being from 40-to-49 yards, so he should be able to secure a contract for 2024 somewhere after kicking for the Jags on a one-year deal.
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Anders Carlson K | NYJ
Packers' Anders Carlson: Errant end to rookie season
Carlson made two of three field-goal attempts and an extra point in Saturday's 24-21 loss to the 49ers.
Carlson did not miss a kick over his first five games as a professional, but he misfired on six field-goal and five extra-point attempts before the regular season ended, and he tacked on one apiece during the playoffs, with his final miss proving particularly costly in a game Green Bay lost by three points. The Packers showed enough confidence in Carlson to draft him in the sixth round and hang onto him all season, but he will presumably face some sort of competition for his job leading up to the 2024 campaign.
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Chase McLaughlin K | TB
Buccaneers' Chase McLaughlin: Rare miss to close out season
McLaughlin connected on a 43-yard field-goal attempt, hit the left upright on a 50-yard try and made both extra-point attempts in the Buccaneers' 31-23 divisional-round loss to the Lions on Sunday.
The normally reliable McLaughlin had a rare long-distance hiccup, with the miss counting as only his third since the start of the regular season and second from 50-plus. Despite the small blemish on an otherwise perfect day, McLaughlin was stellar for the Buccaneers in the 2023 regular season and postseason, going a combined 33-for-36 on field-goal attempts and 38-for-38 on PATs. Having amply outplayed the one-year, $1.1 million deal he played on in 2023, McLaughlin is a virtual lock to garner a lucrative multi-year deal -- almost certainly from Tampa Bay -- this offseason.
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Younghoe Koo K | NYG
Falcons' Younghoe Koo: Solid despite long-distance misses
Koo made 32 of 37 field-goal attempts and 27 of 28 extra-point tries across 17 appearances during the 2023 campaign.
For a second straight season, Koo went exactly 32-for-37 on field-goal tries. In the previous two campaigns, he went 27-for-29 and 37-for-39, respectively, and the biggest difference between the separate two-year stretches is his efficiency from beyond 50 yards. In 2020 and 2021, Koo went 12-for-13 from 50-plus, but he's made just 10 of his last 17 attempts from that distance. Koo's long-range accuracy was never his strong suit, but it's disappointing to see him getting worse in that department -- 3-for-6 in 2023 after 7-for-11 in 2022. Despite the concerns, Koo is still one of the most reliable kickers from inside 50 yards and is under contract through the 2026 campaign. He could see a boost in fantasy value if the Falcons' offense can take a step forward with a new head coach in 2024.
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Chase McLaughlin K | TB
Buccaneers' Chase McLaughlin: Stellar outing in playoff win
McLaughlin drilled field-goal attempts of 28, 54 and 48 yards and also connected on both his extra-point tries in the Buccaneers' 32-9 wild-card win over the Eagles on Monday night.
McLaughlin put together a career-best 93.5 percent success rate on field goals and was perfect on 33 PATs across 17 regular-season games, so Monday night's performance was simply an extension of his outstanding campaign. McLaughlin's 54-yarder, which extended the Buccaneers' lead to 13-0 early in the second quarter, pushed his tally from 50-plus yards to 8-for-9 since the beginning of the regular season. McLaughlin could be in for another very busy day in Sunday's road divisional-road matchup against the Lions, given the expectations of a high-scoring game and Ford Field's pristine kicking conditions.
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Justin Tucker K | BAL
Ravens' Justin Tucker: Struggles from distance in 2023
Tucker finished the regular season going 32 of 37 on field goal tries and 51 of 52 on extra points. He converted just one of five attempts from beyond 50 yards.
It was another strong season from Tucker, who was nearly automatic from inside of 50 yards (96 percent). He wasn't as prolific from long range as in years past, such as his nine makes from 50-plus in 2022 on 14 attempts. Still, the 32-year-old veteran finished as the No. 3 fantasy kicker for the second consecutive year. Tucker and the Ravens will begin their playoff journey Saturday against the Texans.
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Blake Grupe K | IND
Saints' Blake Grupe: Converts 30 field goals and 40 PATs
Grupe knocked through 30 of 37 field-goal attempts and all 40 of his point-after-tries in 17 games during the 2023 season.
Grupe hit two field-goal tries and all six PATs during the Saints' regular-season finale, thus wrapping up his rookie campaign with six straight made field goals. The undrafted product out of Notre Dame won New Orleans' starting kicker job over veteran Wil Lutz this preseason, and, while the rookie was far from perfect, he made a solid impression with 70 total kicking conversions. He also went 16-for-18 on field-goal tries of 39 yards or less. Grupe will look to improve his consistency as a long-range kicker during the 2024 season.
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Brett Maher K | LAR
Rams' Brett Maher: Struggles with misses in 2023
Maher connected on 17 of 23 field-goal attempts and 13 of 15 PATs during the 2023 regular season.
In replacing long-time kicker Matt Gay, Maher's first run as the Rams' starting kicker lasted seven games, coming to a close after a Week 7 contest against the Steelers in which he missed two field goals and a PAT. The veteran kicker was released and replaced by Lucas Havrisik, who also failed to make an impact and was waived in Week 17 after five missed field goals and three missed PAT's of his own in nine games. Maher signed back with the Rams before a Week 18 contest against the 49ers and ended up missing an extra point in his return. Maher, an unrestricted free agent in 2024, did put up a perfect performance during Sunday's wild-card loss to the Lions in which he contributed three field goals and two extra points, but he likely won't return to a Rams team that will look to find a more reliable option to handle kicking duties, perhaps via the draft.
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Riley Patterson K | MIA
Riley Patterson: Moves back to practice squad
The Browns reverted Patterson to their practice squad Monday, per the NFL's transaction log.
After joining Cleveland on Christmas Day, Patterson worked as the team's kicker in the final two weeks of the regular season and in the the wild-card loss to Houston this past Saturday. He attempted and made just one field goal -- a 33-yarder -- during that span and also went 8-for-9 on extra-point attempts. Dustin Hopkins was effective this season for the Browns before injuring his hamstring in Week 16 and will likely retain his role as the team's kicker in the final year of his current contract next season.
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Jason Sanders K | MIA
Dolphins' Jason Sanders: Little doing in wild-card loss
Sanders converted his only extra-point try during Saturday's 26-7 wild-card loss to the Chiefs.
Sanders didn't attempt a field goal during Saturday's frigid weather conditions, especially with Miami's offense stalling early. The loss was reminiscent of the Dolphins' regular-season finale loss to Buffalo, another contest in which trailing from the outset cost Sanders a chance to factor into the offense significantly. Still, Sanders is coming off a solid season in which he converted 24 of 28 field-goal attempts, with his only misses coming from 40-plus yards out.