TEMPE, Ariz. — After getting curbstomped at home by the San Francisco 49ers, general manager Monti Ossenfort was quick to make changes. However, the change made wasn’t one that was really expected, as the team parted ways with veteran punter Pat O’Donnell on Tuesday.
O’Donnell, 34, has been in the league for eleven years and counting, and is on his third team in four seasons. He spent his first eight seasons with the Chicago Bears before heading north in free agency to the division rival Green Bay Packers. O’Donnell was unsigned for the 2023 NFL season but would end up returning to play with the San Francisco 49ers.
The Cardinals brought in O’Donnell as a temporary replacement for Blake Gillikin, who was placed on injured reserve ahead of the team’s Week 6 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts with a lingering back injury. With Gillikin not quite ready to go yet, the Cardinals will need to bring in a temporary replacement.
In the five games he saw as a Cardinal, O’Donnell punted a total of 12 times, averaging 42.2 yards per punt. That would’ve ranked second to last in the league in average yardage, ahead of only Las Vegas’ Brad Robbins, who averages 39.5 yards per punt. While it was an early hook, it was definitely justified.
It has been a tumultuous few weeks for the Cardinals in terms of making decisions. The team chose to place quarterback Kyler Murray on injured reserve in favor of Jacoby Brissett, as well as making decisions on whom to bring up from the practice squad, as Marvin Harrison Jr., Zay Jones, and Simi Fehoko were all out this past week. The decision to cut O’Donnell falls to a lesser degree than the moves above, but still noteworthy.
Ossenfort, along with head coach Jonathan Gannon, will need to assess what the best way forward at the position will look like as they prepare for their second straight game at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars.