Leg Up: New England Patriots Work Out Kickers After Chad Ryland Misses
The New England Patriots brought in five in an attempt to find three.
Per ESPN's Mike Reiss, New England worked out five kickers on Tuesday, two days after a missed Chad Ryland field goal doomed them to a fourth consecutive loss to the New York Giants.
Wednesday morning, Bill Belichick gave this hollow endorsement of his drafted rookie kicker:
Q: Are you sticking with Chad Ryland as kicker?
A: "He's on our roster."
Yikes. Among the Patriots hopefuls were ...
Tanner Brown: Fresh off All-Big 12 honors at Oklahoma State, Brown previously competed for the Los Angeles Rams' job over the summer.
Matthew McCrane: McCrane partook in five NFL games during the 2018 season between Arizona, Oakland, and Pittsburgh before competing in the last two iterations of the XFL.
B.T. Potter: Before he was a training camp leg in Pittsburgh, Potter became the first kicker in ACC history to earn four consecutive 100-point seasons at Clemson.
John Parker Romo: Romo earned All-XFL honors with the San Antonio Brahmas last spring.
Parker White: White stands as the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina football history.
Ryland (37) watches his short equalizer miss at the end of Sunday's loss
Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY SPORTS
Ryland, a fourth-round rookie, has converted only 12 of 18 field goals. His 66.7-percent success rate ranks 31st among qualified kickers and his latest misfire sealed the Patriots' fate in a 10-7 Sunday defeat denied overtime by his failed 35-yard attempt as regulation expired.
In a macabre sense of irony, Sunday marked the second consecutive week that a missed Ryland kick from 35 yards doomed the Patriots (2-9): they previously had to play for a game-winning touchdown on an ill-fated final drive when he missed one in their immediate prior loss to Indianapolis in Frankfurt.
Even with rain adding to a dour atmosphere at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, head coach Bill Belichick didn't sugarcoat his disappointment with Ryland in the aftermath.
"Chad's a very talented player," Belichick said this week. "But this is two weeks in a row we've basically missed extra points. So, it's not good enough."
Time will tell who kicks off for the Patriots when they're ready to take the field for their next game on Sunday afternoon at home against the Los Angeles Chargers (1 p.m. ET, CBS).
