Rookie Kicker Jake Moody is not a Lock to Start for the 49ers
Drafting kicker Jake Moody in the third round of the NFL draft was a bold move by the San Francisco 49ers.
A move like that is rarely done as teams can find a starting kicker in the late rounds on Day 3 of the draft. Better yet, they can find them as undrafted free agents instead of using draft picks. However, the 49ers did not want to wait, and arguably reached for a kicker at the end of Round 3. The 49ers essentially paid $100 for an item that is usually listed as $10. Still, as much as it was a reach, I get why the 49ers took Moody.
Finding an immediate starter was never going to happen for them given they were picking at the end of Round 3. At best, they would find a rotational role player who can give some useful snaps. Otherwise, the players they are drafting will be for the future. A kicker gives them an immediate starter at a position that was of need with Robbie Gould departing. Or at least, in theory that is the idea.
Despite overspending in draft value on a kicker, Moody is not a lock to start for the 49ers in 2023. He's not a guaranteed immediate starter for the 49ers. He just happens to have the best chance at becoming one over anyone else the 49ers picked or could've picked instead of him. Remember, the 49ers still have Zane Gonzalez on the roster.
What is likely to occur is the 49ers will hold a competition between the two. And if Moody is shanking kicks during training camp and/or the preseason, if he gives off anything that makes him look timid and instill discomfort in the coaches, then the 49ers will have no qualms about having Gonzalez as the starter. At that point, it would be a bit of a disaster because they over-drafted for a kicker who can't even win the starting job. But all that matters to the 49ers is winning. Even with the health concerns of Gonzalez, the 49ers will definitely rock with him as the starter over Moody if he has the yips.
All it takes is a couple of bad practices from him to start making him a questionable starter. Should he fail to handle business in camp and the preseason, then it'll be intriguing as to what the 49ers do. Putting him on the practice squad would probably be the path they take, but any team would be able to poach him. Of course, if he is looking skittish already, teams across the league might be checked out on him. But you never know. All it takes is one team in need of a kicker to see what he's got.
Moody should be fine and able to win the starting job convincingly. I don't see why there is any reason to doubt him, but the reality is he can easily be at the bottom if he performs poorly. He just isn't going to be handed the starting spot and will have to be on par at least with a veteran like Gonzalez.
