Cardinals' Matt Prater: Expected to return this season
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Speaking with the media Friday, coach Jonathan Gannon said he expects Prater (knee, IR) to play again this season, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com reports.
Prater is eligible to come off injured reserve following the Cardinals' Week 11 bye, but it's unclear if he'll be activated when eligible. In his place, Chad Ryland has converted 10 of 11 field-goal tries and all nine of his extra-point attempts.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Heads to IR
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The Cardinals placed Prater (knee) on injured reserve Tuesday, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.
Prater's left knee injury had already cost him the Cardinals' last two games, with Arizona elevating Chad Ryland from the practice squad to serve as its kicker on both occasions. The Cardinals had been hoping for an abbreviated absence from Prater, but with the 40-year-old not bouncing back as quickly as hoped, he'll now have to miss at least four more games. Ryland was signed off the practice squad to take Prater's spot on the 53-man roster.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Inactive as expected
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Prater (knee) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Packers.
As expected, Prater will miss a second straight game due to a left knee injury. In Prater's absence, Chad Ryland, who was elevated from the practice squad Saturday, should assume placekicking duties again. Last week, Ryland went 3-for-4 on field-goal tries, with his only miss coming on a blocked 45-yard attempt.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Not likely to play Sunday
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Prater (knee) is listed as questionable but is considered unlikely to play in Sunday's game at Green Bay, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
The writing was on the wall for Prater to miss a second straight game when Arizona elevated kicker Chad Ryland from the practice squad Saturday. Though an official decision on Prater's status won't be made until Arizona posts its inactive list 90 minutes before the 1 p.m. ET kickoff, fantasy managers should already begin to start looking at other options at kicker for Week 6. Prater managed to log a trio of limited practices during the week, and if he sits out Sunday as expected, he'll aim to return to action for a Monday night matchup with the Chargers in Week 7.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Remains limited in practice
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Prater (left knee) was limited at Thursday's practice, Theo Mackie of The Arizona Republic reports.
Stretching back to last week, Prater has been listed as limited on three consecutive practice reports as he deals with a left knee injury. The issue sidelined him for this past Sunday's win at San Francisco, when practice-squad member Chad Ryland handled placekicking duties for the Cardinals. Prater has one more session this week to prove his health before Arizona potentially makes a ruling on his availability for Sunday's game in Green Bay. Ultimately, if the team elevates Ryland again Saturday, it could signal that Prater is in line for a second absence in a row.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Logs limited practice Wednesday
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Prater (knee) practiced on a limited basis Wednesday, Zach Gershman of the Cardinals' official site reports.
Prater managed just one limited practice last week before he was inactive for this past Sunday's win at San Francisco. A left knee injury has been to blame, and head coach Jonathan Gannon implied Monday that the Cardinals are taking a wait-and-see approach with the veteran kicker, per Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com. As such, Arizona's last two sessions of Week 6 prep likely will determine if Prater or practice-squad member Chad Ryland will be the team's placekicker Sunday in Green Bay.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Status TBD for Week 6
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Coach Jonathan Gannon said Monday that the Cardinals will see how Prater (knee) fares in practice this week before determining whether he'll be the team's placekicker this coming Sunday at Green Bay, Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com reports.
Prater mustered just one limited practice (Friday) last week before sitting out Sunday in San Francisco due to a left knee injury. Chad Ryland was elevated from the practice squad and served as Arizona's kicker Week 5, connecting on three of four field-goal attempts and his only point-after try. The missed field goal actually was blocked and returned for a touchdown. In any case, Prater may need to cobble together activity at multiple sessions this week in order to keep his absence to only one game.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Not kicking Sunday
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Prater (knee) is inactive Sunday against the 49ers.
Prater logged a limited practice Friday after back-to-back DNPs, but the veteran kicker isn't healthy enough to take the field in Week 5. Instead, the Cardinals will hand those duties over to Chad Ryland who was elevated from the practice squad Saturday.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Dealing with knee injury
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Prater didn't practice Wednesday due to a left knee injury, Zach Gershman of the Cardinals' official site reports.
The Cardinals haven't had any kickers in Arizona for tryouts or visits this week, but they did sign Chad Ryland to the practice squad Wednesday. Prater's ability to mix into some drills Thursday and/or Friday likely will be key for his odds to play Sunday in San Francisco.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Kicker to Sit
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Prater had a big game in Week 2 against the Rams with 14 Fantasy points, but he scored nine points or less in three other games, including just two in Week 4 against Washington. The 49ers have allowed just seven field goals on the season, and only Will Reichard in Week 2 on the road has scored more than nine Fantasy points. You can safely avoid Prater in this matchup at San Francisco.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Makes both kicks in Week 4
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Prater connected on both point-after tries during Sunday's 42-14 defeat to the Commanders.
Prater's game log remains pristine, as he's struck true on all 16 kicks (six FGAs, 10 PATs) through four contests. That said, Week 4 marked his first outing this season with no field-goal attempts, leaving Sunday's output much to be desired. Among kickers with at least three appearances on the campaign, Prater sits in a tie for 17th at 7.0 points per game with the Ravens' Justin Tucker, Raiders' Daniel Carlson and Patriots' Joey Slye.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Still perfect his season
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Prater struck true on both field-goal attempts and his only point-after try during Sunday's 20-13 defeat to the Lions.
Prater remains perfect this season through three contests, going 6-for-6 on FGAs and 8-for-8 on PATs. The performance so far is good enough for 8.7 points per game, which ranks eighth among placekickers with at least three appearances on the campaign. Prater will look for a more fruitful outing this coming Sunday against the Commanders.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Connects on all seven kicks Sunday
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Prater made both field-goal attempts and all five point-after tries during Sunday's 41-10 win over the Rams.
Prater has yet to miss any of his 11 kicks this season, including Sunday's FGA makes from 48 and 57 yards. The fact that he's attached to the No. 2 scoring offense in the NFL through two weeks (34.5 points per game) helps his cause, as he's tied for ninth in the league at 9.5 points per game with the Ravens' Justin Tucker and the Seahawks' Jason Myers. Prater will look to stay perfect on the campaign Sunday against the Lions.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Makes all four kicks Sunday
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Prater netted both field-goal attempts and both point-after tries during Sunday's 34-28 defeat in Buffalo.
Now in his fourth campaign with the Cardinals, Prater got the season off on the right foot by making all of his kicks, something that he did 11 times in 17 games last year. His FGAs were relatively low risk, though, as they came from 29 and 31 yards out, which lines up with his success rate (93.6 percent) from less than 40 yards during his time in Arizona prior to 2024. With eight points after Week 1, Prater ranks 15th in the NFL in scoring among placekickers.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Modest results during 2023 season
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Prater connected on 28 of 33 field-goal attempts and 22 of 23 point-after tries in 17 regular-season games in 2023.
Being attached to Arizona's 24th-ranked scoring offense in the NFL this season didn't afford Prater a ton of opportunities, as evidenced by ranking 25th in points per game (6.2) among all kickers to make at least 15 appearances. That said, he struck true on a career-high nine FGAs from 50-plus yards, giving him 93 such makes in his 17 years as a pro. Considering he has an 80-percent mark on field-goal accuracy in 10 of the last 11 campaigns, Prater has the consistency to regain fantasy relevance next season if the Cardinals are able to add more firepower on offense in the coming months.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Makes two in win
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Prater connected on both of his field-goal attempts and all three extra-point tries in Sunday's 35-31 win over the Eagles.
Prated made a 28-yard field goal in the first quarter and was good again from 34 yards out in the second, which was all the Cardinals' scoring in the first half. The 39-year-old then contributed successful PATs on three of Arizona's second-half touchdowns.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Sets NFL record
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Prater made his only field-goal attempt and only extra-point try in Sunday's 27-16 loss to the Bears.
Prater's field goal came from 55 yards, setting an NFL record with six such makes this season, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports. The veteran now needs two more makes from 50-plus yards to tie another league record. Although he only sports 89 points on the campaign, Prater's long-range expertise has offered a boost to Arizona's offense.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Makes all kicks
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Prater made all three of his field-goal attempts and both of his extra-point tries in Sunday's 45-29 loss to the 49ers.
Prater converted field goals from 58, 43 and 28 yards. In doing so, the veteran has now hit eight kicks from 50-plus yards, including a 62-yarder back in Week 3. With 85 total points, though, Prater still places outside the top 25 at his position in scoring.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Misses only attempt
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Prater missed his only field-goal try and didn't attempt an extra point in Sunday's 37-14 loss to the Rams.
Prater launched a 56-yarder wide right during the third quarter. The veteran has missed just four kicks all season, accounting for 68 total points despite Sunday's goose egg.
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Cardinals' Matt Prater: Connects on five kicks Sunday
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Prater netted all four field-goal attempts and his only point-after try during Sunday's 25-23 win versus the Falcons.
Prater could have had slightly more output Week 10, but the Cardinals went for two on their first touchdown of the game just before halftime. Still, with Arizona's offense stalling often in Atlanta territory, he was handed FGAs of 51, 46, 56 and 23 yards, all of which he connected on for his most productive performance of the season. And the final one (the 23-yarder) split the uprights as time expired. With quarterback Kyler Murray (knee) now directing the offense, Prater may start to make his way up the most points scored list, but he currently ranks 26th (6.4 points per game) among NFL placekickers that have made at least seven appearances this season.
