The Dallas Cowboys are signing kicker Tristan Vizcaino to their practice squad, multiple outlets reported Wednesday, an insurance policy in the event of another meltdown by Brett Maher.
Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones hinted at such a move on Tuesday.
Maher made NFL history in the NFC Wild Card win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night, with four missed extra-point attempts. According to Elias, Maher became the first player since 1932 to miss four PATs in a regular season or playoff game, a span of 16,207 games.
Vizcaino, 26, played in three games in the regular season – two for New England and one for Arizona. He made two field goals and three extra points in Week 10 for Arizona, while merely used for kickoffs by the Patriots.
For his career, Vizcaino has made 75 percent of his PATs and 11 of 12 field-goal attempts, including a long of 47.
Maher, 33, made 50 of his 53 PATs in the regular season and 29 of 32 field-goal attempts. His previous playoff experience came in 2018 with the Cowboys. In two games, he was 5-for-5 on PATs and 1 of 2 on field-goal attempts.
In the victory over Tampa Bay, Maher made his final extra-point try.
Jones said Tuesday he won’t rely on a strong history with Maher and fears going into an elimination game with doubts at the position.
Meanwhile, Cowboys special teams coach John Fassel said Maher had a case of the “yips.”
“I believe in the hot hand, and I believe in the yips, absolutely,” Fassel said Tuesday, per ESPN. “Let’s face it, he only missed (six) kicks all season. The yips happen, so I expect a hot hand coming up.”
–Field Level Media