Over the past couple of seasons, the Arizona Cardinals elected to go with youth over experience at the placekicking position. That worked in 2019 with Zane Gonzalez handling those duties, but the 25-year old went off of the rails a bit last season. The Cards elected to move on from the youngster, and brought in a 36-year old this past week to replace him.
Arizona’s new kicker in 2021 will be Matt Prater, a veteran who was handed his first full-time NFL job back in 2007. The two-time Pro Bowler has spent significant time with two organizations (Denver Broncos, Detroit Lions), and had a cup of coffee with two other clubs (Miami Dolphins, Atlanta Falcons) as well.
To say that Prater has been around the block a time or two would be an understatement. In 94 appearances for the Broncos, the 5’10, 201 pounder converted 141 of 170 field-goal attempts and 259 of his 261 extra point tries. While with Detroit, Prater made good on 179 of 212 field-goal tries and 231 out of 241 PATs.
The Cardinals soured on Gonzalez after the Texas native missed three crucial kicks last year. The 6’0, 202 pounder missed a 49-yard field-goal attempt that could’ve tied the score with less than two minutes left in a loss to the Miami Dolphins. Gonzalez also missed clutch kicks versus the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots, although he did redeem himself with a game-winning boot against Seattle just minutes after his shank.
Prater let it be known during his introductory press conference this past Friday that he welcomes pressure situations. “I don’t treat a last-second kick any different than I do an extra-point or a first-quarter field goal,” the Ohio native told a throng of reporters. “If I get put in situations like that, I expect to make them.”
The Cards went the “older” placekicker route back in 2017 when they brought in the aging Phil Dawson. It was a similar situation, with the 42-year old replacing the much-younger Chandler Catanzaro. The “Catman” had struggled the season before, missing a whopping 11 attempts for the Redbirds.
Dawson did not have much success, which led to Arizona’s acquisition of Gonzalez. The “Red Sea” can only hope that the vastly experienced Prater, who was signed to a two-year contract, will do better.