Tag: Matthew Wright

Chiefs elevate two players from practice squad for Week 18 vs. Raiders

The #Chiefs have officially elevated two players from the practice squad for Week 18’s game vs. the #Raiders.

The Kansas City Chiefs have made a pair of practice squad elevations ahead of their Week 18 away game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

With Skyy Moore ruled out and Mecole Hardman expected to be on a pitch count in Week 18, the first order of business for the Chiefs was shoring up their wide receiver group. As a result, the Chiefs have elevated WR Ihmir Smith-Marsette from the practice squad via standard elevation. This is the second time that Smith-Marsette has been elevated this season. In his first game against the Denver Broncos in Week 14, Smith-Marsette played three offensive snaps and no snaps on special teams. He recorded no official statistics in that game.

In another expected move, the Chiefs officially elevated K Matthew Wright to the 53-man roster via standard elevation. Wright was in for a tryout on Thursday and signed with the practice squad on Friday. This doesn’t mean for certain that he’ll play in place of Harrison Butker, who is questionable for Week 18 with back spasms. Wright simply provides the team with a suitable backup plan if Butker is unable to go.

Wright is 15-of-15 on extra points this season and has made 83.3% of his field goal attempts, including a 59-yarder for the Chiefs against the Raiders back in Week 5.

Another note from the personnel notice: LB Justin Hilliard was the player released to make room for Wright on the practice squad.

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Chiefs to sign K Matthew Wright to practice squad

With Harrison Butker dealing with back spasms, the #Chiefs are adding K Matthew Wright to the practice squad.

Kansas City Chiefs K Harrison Butker’s status is questionable for the team’s Week 18 tilt with the Las Vegas Raiders. As a result, the team brought in a familiar face — Matthew Wright — for a tryout on Thursday. Now, they’re set to officially sign Matthew Wright to the practice squad.

As first reported by ESPN’s Field Yates, the Chiefs are adding Wright to the practice squad. He kicked in two games for Kansas City and four games in Pittsburgh this season, with a perfect 15-of-15 record on extra points and an 83.3% record on field goals (15-of-18) during that span.

One of Wright’s two games with the Chiefs was Week 5 against the Raiders. He held the franchise distance record for one week with a 59-yard field goal made in that game. He stands to face that opponent again in Week 18 should he be elevated to the 53-man roster.

It’s not yet clear who the Chiefs will release from the practice squad to make room for Wright. It’s possible that Jerrion Ealy, who was released to make room for LB Justin Hilliard, could be released again.

Expect the team to use a standard elevation on Wright this afternoon in order to have him available as insurance for Butker on game day. It’s not a guarantee that Wright will be needed, but the team has made it clear this week that it’s an instance where you’d rather be safe than sorry.

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Chiefs hosted K Matthew Wright for tryout on Thursday

The #Chiefs hosted K Matthew Wright for a tryout on Thursday with K Harrison Butker questionable for Week 18 due to a back injury.

With Kansas City Chiefs K Harrison Butker having back spasms pop up during practice this week, the team hosted a familiar face on a tryout.

Matthew Wright — who kicked for the Chiefs for two games (Week 4-5) when Butker was injured earlier this season — was in Kansas City for a tryout on Thursday. Wright was the team’s second backup kicker (third if you count Justin Reid) after Matt Ammendola struggled in Butker’s absence. In his two games kicking for the Chiefs, Wright was nearly perfect, going 8-for-8 on extra points and 3-for-4 on field goals.

Wright was signed from the Chiefs’ practice squad by the Steelers in early November. He was released from Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster in early December once their starting kicker Chris Boswell returned from injury. With the Steelers, Wright was a perfect 7-of-7 on extra points and 12-of-14 on field goal attempts.

The Chiefs have not yet signed Wright to the 53-man roster or practice squad, but with Harrison Butker listed as questionable in Week 18, this is an appropriate measure to take. They can sign Wright to the practice squad tomorrow and promote him to the 53-man roster via standard elevation if need be.

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Jaguars’ Riley Patterson named AFC Special Teams Player of the Week

For a third straight week, a Jaguars player earned AFC Player of the Week honors.

Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Riley Patterson is the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week after scoring 13 points in a 19-3 win over the New York Jets.

Patterson made four field goals and an extra point in the win, although he did miss a 44-yard field goal just before halftime.

The Jaguars struggled to find a kicker in August and added Patterson after preseason when he was waived by the Detroit Lions. Patterson quickly won the starting job in Jacksonville and has been a relatively reliable player for the team.

Patterson has made 27 of his 32 field goal attempts and all but one of his 31 extra point tries. Patterson is eighth in the NFL this season in points scored with 111.

It’s the third straight week that the Jaguars were represented on the AFC Players of the Week. Two weeks ago, Trevor Lawrence earned the honor for the second time this season and last week Rayshawn Jenkins was recognized for his 18-tackle, two-interception day.

Last year, Jaguars kicker Matthew Wright won AFC Special Teams Player of the Week after making three field goals, including 54- and 53-yarders to beat the Miami Dolphins.

Chiefs K Matthew Wright predicted Harrison Butker would break field goal record in Week 6

#Chiefs K Harrison Butker revealed that Matthew Wright predicted he’d break his 59-yard field goal record in Week 6. | from @EdEastonJr

The return of Harrison Butker last Sunday brought back a sense of normalcy to special teams for the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 6.

Butker immediately showed he was healthy by connecting on two of three field goal attempts, including the franchise record-setting 62-yard kick in the first half. Butker’s replacement for Week 4 and Week 5, Matthew Wright, set the franchise record against the Raiders. He held it for just a week before the former’s return.

Wright performed admirably in Butker’s absence, but he handed over the reins in Week 6. Butker revealed during Wednesday’s press conference, that after the Week 5 game, Wright made a prediction that his record wouldn’t last long.

“Yeah. It’s funny,” Butker began. “After the game, Tommy (Townsend) told Matt (Wright), ‘You should keep that ball that you made the 59-yard field goal with – get it painted – Chiefs record.’ And Matt said – funny enough – to him, ‘Oh, I’m not going to get that because Butker’s going to break it the next week.’ So, it kind of came true, and I was able to break that record, but it is funny. A lot of guys were saying to me about Matthew breaking the record in basically his second game here.”

Wright had bounced around with several teams since going undrafted in 2019. He quickly made an impression during his few weeks of service and was a motivation for Butker to return to the top of his game. Butker didn’t know if he’d have a chance to top the record in Week 7, but when the opportunity struck, he made the most of it.

“As a kicker, you can only do as best as you can with the opportunities you’re given, right? So, ‘Oh Matthew Wright broke the record,’ I can’t force (Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Dave) Toub or (Head Coach Andy) Reid to put me out there for a longer field goal – that’s just kind of what the game provided me,” Butker said. “Tommy and James (Winchester) did a great job, and I was able to go hit it.”

For the Chiefs’ sake, hopefully, Butker will remain healthy this season and Wright won’t have a chance to retake the record.

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Chiefs to sign former Jaguars K Matthew Wright to practice squad

The #Chiefs are set to sign former #Jaguars K Matthew Wright to the practice squad per report.

The Kansas City Chiefs have a new backup kicker.

According to ESPN’s Field Yates, the Chiefs intend to sign former Jacksonville Jaguars kicker Matthew Wright to the practice squad. This move comes a day after the team released Matt Ammendola, who struggled in the Week 3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, missing an extra point and field goal.

Wright spent 14 games with the Jaguars in 2021, making 21-of-24 field goals and 13-of-15 extra points attempted. He kicked three games for the Steelers in 2020, where he was perfect on field goals and extra points.

One concern with this signing is that Wright might not have the greatest distance on kickoffs. He has 46 career kickoffs and just seven career touchbacks.

Chiefs starting kicker Harrison Butker has been dealing with a significant ankle sprain that has kept him out of the past two games. It’s unclear whether he’ll be available to play on “Sunday Night Football” in Week 4, but this move would at least suggest that there is at least a chance that Butker won’t be ready to play. In that case, expect the team to elevate Wright to the 53-man roster ahead of the Week 4 game.

With the team also signing Cortez Broughton to the practice squad, this transaction brings the Chiefs to a full 16-man practice squad again.

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Colts work out kickers Josh Lambo, Matthew Wright

The Colts brought in a pair of kickers (and potentially more) for a workout Tuesday.

The Indianapolis Colts worked out free-agent kickers Josh Lambo and Matthew Wright on Tuesday, according to Joel A. Erickson of The Indianapolis Star.

Following the rough opener for Rodrigo Blankenship, which included two kickoff out of bounds and a failed attempt on the winning field-goal, many have been calling for the Colts to replace the third-year kicker.

The Colts are likely going to hold a tryout for several kickers so this may not be the only group of players.

Lambo spent two years with the San Diego Chargers (2015-2016) and five years with the Jacksonville Jaguars (2017-2021). He has converted 89.7% of his field goals and 89.9% of his extra-point attempts.

Wright has played one season with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2020) and one with the Jaguars (2021). He has converted 89.3% of his field-goal attempts and 90.9% of his extra-point attempts.

It will be interesting to see if the Colts bring in any more kickers, and everyone will be watching to see what kind of decision they make.

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Panthers work out five kickers on Monday

Eddy Piñeiro and Brian Johnson weren’t the only kickers the Panthers brought in for a look on Monday.

On Saturday, Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule said replacing kicker Zane Gonzalez was a “major thing for us.” And judging by the steps they took on Monday, he wasn’t kidding.

In addition to bringing in Brian Johnson and Eddy Piñeiro for a workout earlier today, the Panthers also called in three other legs for a look. That bunch included Chase McLaughlin, Matthew Wright and Taylor Bertolet.

McLaughlin may be the more familiar name to many, as he’s a well-traveled veteran of just three seasons. The 26-year-old has kicked for six different organizations since 2019—including the Los Angeles Chargers, San Francisco 49ers, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns.

He stuck around for 16 games in Cleveland this past season, converting on 15 of his 21 field goal attempts and 36 of his 37 extra point tries.

Wright has kicked for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Jaguars in his two seasons while Bertolet, who hasn’t recorded an official NFL try, spent a number of weeks on the Panthers’ practice squad in 2020.

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Jags add DE/OLB Rashod Berry and OL Wes Martin off waivers, waive PK Matthew Wright

The Jags had a busy day on the waiver wire Wednesday. They added two players in DE/OLB Rashod Berry and OL Wes Martin, then parted ways with Matthew Wright.

The Jacksonville Jaguars were a busy team when it came to the waiver wire Wednesday. They added two players from it in offensive lineman Wes Martin and defensive end and outside linebacker Rashod Berry. They also waived placekicker Matthew Wright, too.

Martin, 26, joins the Jags after previously spending time with the New York Giants. However, he entered the league in 2019 as a fourth-round pick from Indiana University Bloomington with the Washington Commanders. He saw a majority of his time on the field with Washington and started in 10 games for them between 2019 and 2020. Martin also registered a start last season with New York, bringing his start total to 11.

Berry, 25, entered the league in 2020 as an undrafted player with the New England Patriots. He played tight end and defensive end for Ohio State before entering the NFL Draft and stuck with playing on the defensive side as a professional player.

Berry joined the Lions last August and was active for five games with them. In the process of his time with Detroit, he saw the field for 62 snaps and recorded three tackles and a quarterback hit.

Wright, 26, joined the Jags last season in late September after former kicker Josh Lambo failed to make a field goal attempt in the Jags’ first two games. He initially was on their practice squad, but was elevated to the active roster in mid-October. During his third game on the active roster, he was able to hit a game-winning field goal for the Jags against the Miami Dolphins, giving them their first win of the season.

Wright ultimately finished the 2021 season 13-of-15 (86.7%) on extra-point attempts and was 21-of-24 (87.5%) on his field-goal attempts. He was one of three kickers on the offseason roster, but with the team moving on from him, they are now down to undrafted rookie kicker Andrew Mevis and veteran Ryan Santoso.

Poll: Should the Jaguars run it back with Matthew Wright at kicker?

Wright proved to be very effective after taking over for Josh Lambo. Was it enough to be re-signed and secure the job heading into 2022. though?

Among Jacksonville’s many problems in 2021, one of the most pressing — at least early in the season — was its struggles in the kicking game.

Josh Lambo, the veteran kicker who would later provide the catalyst that led to the team firing Urban Meyer, began the year as the starter. However, he was coming off an injury-plagued 2020 season, and he just didn’t look himself.

He missed his first three field goals to begin the season and two of his first seven extra points, and he was later released by the team. His replacement was Matthew Wright, a third-year kicker who had made several stops (including in the short-lived XFL, where he was cut during training camp) but hadn’t been able to stick anywhere.

After Wright took the job, though, things immediately improved. He had a very solid season and, with the Jaguars’ offensive problems, got a good bit of work. He hit 21 of his 24 field-goal attempts, and six of those attempts were from 50-plus yards, of which he made four. His long on the year was from 56.

It certainly could have been a lot worse for the Jags considering the way the season began, but Wright managed to hold down the position throughout the otherwise rough campaign.

Heading into 2022, the question is whether this team should move forward with Wright, who is pending free agent, as its kicker. While he was overall very efficient, his two misses on 15 extra-point attempts, while not disastrous, were still less than ideal.

It may not be a bad idea to draft a kicker or maybe look at other free agent kickers, especially considering Wright was a player that previously struggled to remain on an NFL roster. But with that being said, Wright proved that he can be trusted from long-range, and if he can carry his efficiency into 2022, there’s no real need to upgrade.

Jacksonville had some competition at this spot last offseason under the previous staff, and it seems fair to assume there will be some again now, especially with a new special teams coordinator in town in Heath Farwell.

But should the team enter the offseason planning for Wright to retain the kicking job in 2022 if he’s brought back? Or should it look for an upgrade, or at the least some competition? Let us know in the poll below.

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