Los Angeles Rams Sean McVay On Brett Maher's Struggles: 'He's Got To Be Better'
The Los Angeles Rams have been a pretty inconsistent team this season, but one thing that has been consistent is their subpar kicking game.
Without another kicker in line after the departure of Matt Gay this offseason, the Rams scrambled to sign former Dallas Cowboy Brett Maher just before the season began. Maher had been merely serviceable through the first third of the season, but the bottom really fell out in Sunday's loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The 33-year-old missed two of his three field goal attempts (albeit both from over 50 yards away) and his lone PAT.
In a seven-point loss, Maher's kicking woes quite literally proved to be the difference.
After the game, Rams coach Sean McVay was understandably not too thrilled with his kicker.
“We'll look at it and we'll see," McVay told reporters. "He's got to be better. That's seven points that we missed out on that were key and critical for the momentum of the game and the type of game that it was. Those were tough ones today.”
Maher kicks a field goal during the Rams' Week 1 win over the Seattle Seahawks.
Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
Needless to say, that's not a ringing endorsement for the veteran kicker.
Maher has now made 17 of 23 kicks on the season, which ranks 30th among 33 kickers. He's also one of just 10 kickers to miss an extra point this season.
Beyond just a poor accuracy percentage, the way Maher has missed has also been concerning. With most of his misses going wide left, it's fair to wonder if his accuracy issues are due to a mental block.
Given how his time in Dallas ended, though, it's not too hard to see why those struggles exist. Maher missed five of his six extra points in two playoff games, including four in the Wild Card Round. After the Cowboys were eliminated, Maher became the subject of heavy criticism from the Dallas fanbase and beyond.
With a matchup against his former team coming up on Sunday, Maher is just looking to get back on track and show the Rams can count on him.
