Steve Keim picked wrong replacement kicker for the Arizona Cardinals

Arizona Cardinals general manager Steve Keim chose unreliable placekicker Matt Ammendola as a replacement for Matt Prater. 

There was genuine concern among the Arizona Cardinals faithful last week when placekicker Matt Prater was dealing with a sore hip. The veteran turned in a gutsy performance versus the Carolina Panthers, but there was no guarantee that Prater would be available for this past Sunday’s matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles.

One day after the Week 4 victory over Carolina, the Cards brought in four kickers for a tryout. Surely, general manager Steve Keim would supply the club with a competent fill-in for the injured Prater.

When the workout was over, Keim decided that Matt Ammendola was the best option for the Cardinals. In hindsight, that decision may have very well cost the team a come-from-behind win over the undefeated Eagles.

Matt Ammendola may have cost the Arizona Cardinals a victory in Week 5

With just 22 seconds left in the battle with Philly, and Arizona trailing by three points, Ammendola lined up to attempt a 43-yard field goal. A conversion would have more than likely sent the hard-fought contest into overtime. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be.

Cards enthusiasts watched in horror as Ammendola’s kick sailed to the right of the uprights. It was only natural that many fans would choose to blame the 25-year old for the loss. Starting guard Justin Pugh would have none of that, however, and he directed his anger at the reporters who were waiting for Ammendola at his locker following the game.

"“It’s not one (expletive) guy. I missed a block, we missed touchdowns, we had the ball and should’ve been able to score. It’s not one (expletive) guy. Everyone’s waiting around for one guy to come back here and it (expletive) ain’t right. It’s not right.” – via FTW"

If Pugh doesn’t want to lay the defeat at the feet of Ammendola, than perhaps he should hold Keim responsible. After all, the Cardinals GM thought it was a good idea to sign a placekicker who had made just 2 out of his 8 field-goal tries from 40 yards or more during his 13 NFL appearances. Did Keim really believe that the obviously erratic Ammendola was the franchise’s best option?

Arizona can only hope that Prater will be healthy enough to kick when the squad takes on the Seattle Seahawks this coming Sunday. If that’s not possible, Keim better think long and hard about replacing the unreliable Ammendola. Rodrigo Blankenship, anyone?

(Statistics provided by Pro Football Reference)