Despite a trade to acquire kicker Zane Gonzalez from the Carolina Panthers, the 49ers could still be in the market for a kicker in the NFL draft. While Michigan’s Jake Moody is the consensus top prospect at the position, Maryland’s Chad Ryland is another intriguing option. He told Justin Melo of the Draft Network that he had a private workout with the 49ers.
Ryland has a couple of things on his side as a prospect.
First, he has a ton of kicks under his belt. He played at Eastern Michigan for four seasons where he hit 75.7 percent of his 74 field goal tries. He also connected on 97.2 percent of his 145 extra point attempts. Ryland transferred to Maryland for his final college season and connected on 82.6 percent of his 23 kicks and on 39 of his 40 extra points.
He also has a big leg that allows him to handle kickoffs effectively and allows him to have range beyond 50 yards. Accuracy on kicks will matter above all, but the ability to turn more kickoffs into touchbacks to take pressure of a sometimes shaky 49ers coverage unit would be welcome. It may even be a necessity as the team evaluates the kickers in this year’s draft.
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