Jaguars Sign 2nd-Year Kicker Chase McLaughlin
It appears the Jacksonville Jaguars have their new kicker for Weeks 10 & 11.
A day after the Jaguars ended kicker Josh Lambo's season by placing him on injured reserve with a hip injury, the Jaguars announced they have signed second-year kicker Chase McLaughlin to their active roster. McLaughlin was previously on the Minnesota Vikings practice squad.
The Jaguars said Tuesday that McLaughlin will be placed on the team’s exempt/commissioner permission list as he goes through the testing and screening protocols and does not currently count against the team’s 53-man roster.
The 2019 undrafted rookie has appeared in 11 career games for the Colts, Chargers and 49ers -- all during the 2019 season -- and has made 18 of 23 field goals (78.3%.) and 26 of 26 point after tries (100.0%.).
He was originally signed by the Bills as an undrafted free agent in 2019. McLaughlin earned First Team All-Big Ten honors and won the Bakken-Anderson Big Ten Kicker of the Year award for the 2018 season at the University of Illinois, and he also holds the Illinois school record with five career field goals from more than 50 yards.
McLaughlin is the latest kicker the Jaguars have added to their roster to fill in for Lambo, who has battled hip injuries for much of 2020. Lambo missed Weeks 3 through 6 with the injury before returning in Week 7 and playing in Week 9 vs. the Houston Texans. But on the same day Lambo hit a 59-yard field goal, he re-injured his hip during an onside kick attempt, ending his season.
The Jaguars had previously utilized four different kickers in the four games Lambo missed: Brandon Wright, Aldrick Rosas, Stephen Hauschka and Jon Brown. Rosas was the best of the bunch and will potentially get another crack at the job when his four-game suspension ends at the end of November. Rosas was signed to the team's practice squad on Monday.
McLaughlin will make his Jaguars debut in Week 10 against the Green Bay Packers.
