The Minnesota Vikings released struggling kicker Blair Walsh yesterday. His job had been in jeopardy for a while. That was never more evident than last week when the Vikings held a kicker tryout. Walsh had to know that he couldn't afford another missed kick. He missed an extra point on Sunday against the Washington Redskins. That was enough for the decision-makers in Minnesota.
Walsh had been hounded by the media since he missed a game-winning field goal in last January's playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. It was a moment that he had to put behind him but no one would let him. The media had really been circling him through his struggles this season. Four missed field goals and four missed extra points. Kicking in the NFL is a thankless job. He's either the hero or the goat. There's no middle ground. If he makes the kick he's simply doing his job. If he misses the kick he should be booted out of town. Maybe executed. Walsh was a sixth-round pick out of Georgia in the 2012 NFL Draft. He immediately set a very high bar for himself as a rookie. All-Pro. Perfect on ten kicks from beyond 50 yards. That rookie brilliance carried him through two good, but not great, seasons to a nice contract extension in 2015. His struggles seemed to start as soon as he signed that extension. He still managed to lead the league in made field goals in 2015 but that was mostly due to the Vikings having to settle for so many damn field goals. His struggles were most evident when a new NFL rule pushed extra points to a 32-33-yard kick. He missed four from the new distance after missing only one through his first three seasons at the old distance. An NFL kicker should still be near perfect from any distance inside of 40 yards. Walsh started his career so well that any miss was a surprise. Over the past year his kicking had gotten to the point where it was a surprise when he made a kick.
It's being reported that the Vikings will sign Kai Forbath to replace Walsh. Forbath was undrafted out of UCLA in 2011. He was with the Washington Redskins from 2012-2014 and the New Orleans Saints for most of last season. He was one of the six kickers that was present at last week's tryout. The most curious aspect of Forbath's signing is that he was college teammates with Vikings punter/holder Jeff Locke and long snapper Kevin McDermott. That familiarity could be very important moving forward as those three must work well together on field goals and extra points for the Vikings to be successful.
A new tackle too.
The Vikings lost left tackle Jake Long for the season when he tore his Achilles tendon against the Redskins on Sunday. He's the fourth tackle that the Vikings have lost for the season since July and joins Matt Kalil and Andre Smith on injured reserve. Phil Loadholt retired a few days before training camp opened in July. To replace Long, the Vikings plucked rookie tackle Rashod Hill from the practice squad of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Rumor has it that the Jaguars tried to keep Hill by promoting him to their 53-man roster. The Jacksonville native saw a greater opportunity with the Vikings. With the rate at which tackles are dropping in Minnesota he's probably right. Hill signed with the Jaguars in the spring as an undrafted free agent out of Southern Mississippi.
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