The NFL cut down day delivered a series of kicker trades across the league and both the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers were reportedly among the teams that tried to acquire a kicker on Monday.
Dallas and San Francisco are both dealing with significant uncertainty at the position. Moody, the 99th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, suffered a quad injury that kept him out of the final preseason game and puts his status for the regular-season opener in jeopardy.
Meanwhile, in Dallas, the Cowboys quickly moved on from Tristan Vizcaino in training camp after signing former Notre Dame kicker Brandon Aubrey. However, Aubrey didn’t show enough during the preseason to secure his roster spot.
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- Will Lutz stats (2022): 74.2 percent field-goal conversion rate, 100 percent on extra-point attempts
While the 49ers and Cowboys have two of the best rosters in the NFL, each front office is concerned about its kicking situation. It’s why both clubs are expected to monitor the waiver wire and free agency, but only after they each reportedly tried to address their problem via trade.
According to Chris Tomasson, the Cowboys, 49ers, Los Angeles Rams, and Tennessee Titans all exploded interest in Will Lutz when the New Orleans Saints made him available. He was ultimately traded to the Denver Broncos, with Tennessee acquiring Nick Folk.
Lutz, age 29, did have a down year last season. After missing all of 2021 with an injury, Lutz returned last fall to only make 74.2 percent of his field-goal attempts. While he was excellent from 50-plus yards out, making 4-of-6 attempts, he only made 50 percent of his kicks from 40-49 yards away.
However, Lutz has been excellent in the past. He earned Pro Bowl honors in 2019 after converting 88.9 percent of his 36 field-goal attempts. From 2017-’19, he converted 89.2 percent of his field goals, including 9-of-13 from 50-plus yards out and he made 96.7 percent of his extra-point attempts.
San Francisco seemed settled at kicker heading into late August, but the situation changed drastically in a matter of days thanks to the injuries Moody and Zane Gonzalez suffered. Gonzalez placed Gonzalez on season-ending injured reserve, while Moody is questionable for Week 1.
As for Dallas, it’s currently poised to enter the regular season with Aubrey as its starting kicker. The 28-year-old has never attempted a kick in a regular-season NFL game and he is still considered to be on the Cowboys’ roster bubble.
