Former Cowboys K Brett Maher gets booted from Rams after awful start

The writing was on the wall regarding Brett Maher's future with the Los Angeles Rams after his three missed kicks loomed large in Sunday's loss. Speaking to reporters, Sean McVay didn't confirm that the team was looking at alternative options, but it seemed like a matter of when, not if, Maher's time in Inglewood would end.

Sure enough, the Rams released Maher on Tuesday.

It's hardly a surprising move, as Maher shanked two field goals and missed an extra point against the Steelers in Week 6. While the Rams blew an early lead and squandered chances to win the game late, Maher's misses added up to seven points in a game LA ultimately lost 24-17.

It seems as though Maher has never fully regained his confidence after his nightmare 2022 playoffs with the Cowboys. Now, we can't help but wonder if the 33-year-old finds another job in the NFL after his messy Rams tenure.

Rams release former Cowboys kicker Brett Maher after dreadful start to 2023.

Forget finding another job. Could Maher simply retire in light of this news? Not many teams are currently in need of a kicker. The hated 49ers spring to mind amid rookie Jake Moody's continued struggles, but why would they throw a dart at Maher after they had a front-row seat to his all-time bad playoff run last year?

For the season, Maher is 17-of-23 on field goals. His six misses are the most in the NFL and his 73.9% conversion rate is 29th out of 32 kickers. The wonky percentage would be palatable if Maher was still a marksman from long range, but even that element of his game has vanished. He's missed four straight kicks from beyond 50 yards and is only 7-of-9 from 40-49 yards.

For context, Maher ranked sixth in field goal percentage last season and was an incredible 9-of-11 on kicks from 50 yards or longer. He also was 50-of-53 on extra points. He's only missed one point after this season, but there's still more than half the schedule left to play at the time of his release.

Cowboys fans would love to see Maher get another shot somewhere, but that isn't likely to happen anytime soon.

Not on the heels of a three-miss showing in a loss that sunk the Rams to 3-4 on the season with a matchup in Dallas up next, and certainly not after he came up short in the Broncos kicking competition in training camp.

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